My internship with the Barton Child Law and Policy Clinic has been a life-altering experience. Coming from San Diego, California and having volunteer and work experience in the child protective services system there, I had quite a different perception before coming to Georgia. I felt the child protective system in San Diego did not meet foster children's needs due to bureaucratic and systemic problems. I had no idea how different Georgia's laws and child welfare system were. After my experience this summer, I realize how much Georgia's child welfare system needs motivated, professional, child advocates to protect Georgia's children from abuse and to ensure they find safe, permanent homes. I am now considering working in Georgia once I finish my graduate (master of social work) and law school degrees.

I interned at the Office of the Child Advocate under Dee Simms. This state government office was created by legislation of the Governor after horrific outcomes of children in foster care. The Office receives complaints from all over the State of Georgia concerning complaints about DFCS. The Office has independent oversight of all 159 counties in the State. It was my job to receive complaints and perform the investigations assigned to me. This allowed me to work autonomously while at the same time utilizing the professionals of multiple disciplines in the Office for consult and guidance.

Through my experiences this summer, I spoke with DFCS caseworkers, supervisors, directors, CASA workers, Guardian Ad Litems (GAL's), Special Assistants to the Attorney General (SAAG's), and many other child welfare organizations. I was involved in cases which left me in disbelief. I thought children in our civilized world would never suffer as some of Georgia's children have. The most encouraging part of this experience was that I felt I was making a difference. Through my investigations, reports of findings and meetings with DFCS directors, I was able to point out specific policy violations of staff, resolve inconsistencies between case workers, and in some cases, right a wrong. Through this, I obtained confidence in learning to confront a multitude of professionals with difficult issues in a professional manner. This was excellent training for my future work in policy making.

In addition, I attended two of the Governor's Work Group meetings. One of these was a collaborative of professionals from DFCS, Department of Juvenile Justice, and Department of Human Resources (DHR) mental health services, to create legislature for the child welfare system. It was exciting to witness the high-powered "brain work" involved in creating future social policy. I also attended a Child Fatality Review meeting at the State DHR. It was eye-opening to learn how many foster children have died this year and some of the incidents that brought about their death. This group of professionals decide what type of questions and information should be gathered in the investigation of these deaths.

The Office of the Child Advocate performs other activities that I believe in also.

Both the Barton Child Law and Policy Clinic's extensive training and my experiences with Office of the Child Advocate have given me in-depth knowledge of Georgia's child welfare system and incredible insight to helping Georgia's children and furthering my career in child advocacy.

It was startling to find that even where DFCS caseworkers went to great lengths to protect and find permanent placements for these children, GAL's, SAAG's and judges failed these children. It seems many professionals working for the welfare of children do not have a complete understanding of abused children.

It was also alarming to me that DFCS caseworkers just recently are being required to earn a college degree in social work or human services. In my training for my Master's degree in Social Work, understanding how to work with clients and the many factors influencing families is imperative to this work.