Report Shows Kansas’ Progress in Ongoing Child Welfare Reform; Work Remains

Neutral party releases fifth McIntyre Settlement report

9/22/2026

Topeka, Kan. – The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP), the independent neutral third party overseeing the McIntyre class action settlement, today released its fifth report assessing the State of Kansas’ progress toward achieving performance requirements and improvement goals in the settlement agreement. This report, covering data from calendar year 2025, shows areas where the State maintained strong performance, and highlights opportunities to build on these successes and drive continued improvement for Kansas children and families. It also highlights areas where persistent challenges remain.

The McIntyre et al. vs. Howard et al. class action lawsuit was filed in 2018 under the Colyer administration by Kansas Appleseed, Children’s Rights, and the National Center for Youth Law against the Governor, Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF), Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Governor Laura Kelly was later dismissed from the case.

A settlement was reached in 2020 and was structured to ensure Kansas would achieve substantial progress and compliance in key performance areas over a multi-year period. Performance areas include accountability, reporting and implementation, practice improvements, and outcomes. The settlement recognizes that the outcomes and practice improvements will not all be accomplished in one year. To successfully complete a commitment, DCF must meet the outcome one year and then meet it a second year.

Reaching targets, exiting commitments

The State has complied with the Accountability, Reporting, and Implementation requirements since 2021 and, based on performance assessed in 2025, has met the final settlement agreement targets for four of the 10 Practice Improvements and Outcomes. The State is now eligible to exit these four commitments. Those include:

Placement stability: Findings show most children and youth were in stable placements.

Outcome: DCF met the final target goal of 90% for two consecutive reviews.

Initial mental health and trauma screens: This most recent report shows the State has continued to build on its progress in ensuring children and youth entering DCF custody have timely initial mental health and trauma screens conducted by a trained and qualified mental health professional within 30 days of entry into the foster care system.

Outcome: The outcome rose to 96% in 2025, up from 94% in 2024.

Crisis intervention services: This practice improvement ensures crisis intervention services are available statewide.

Outcome: The State met this commitment in 2024 and 2025.

Licensed capacity: This practice improvement stated placements shall not exceed their licensed capacity without an approved exception.

Outcome: This commitment was met in 2023 and maintained in 2024, and DCF excited the commitment in 2025.

Now that the State has achieved and sustained three additional commitments in 2025, in addition to achieving licensed capacity in 2024, as stipulated in the settlement agreement, the State will begin taking steps to exit court oversight of these four commitments. Next steps include the State entering a motion before the court to formally note in the agreement that the four commitments were achieved and no longer under court oversight or enforceable within the settlement agreement.

“We have remained focused and accountable in delivering on the commitments outlined in the settlement agreement, working in partnership to achieve meaningful and lasting improvements for young people in foster care,” DCF Secretary Laura Howard said. “I’m proud of the progress we’ve made and the stronger foundation we’ve built. At the same time, we recognize that our work is not complete. We’re committed to building on this progress and following through on the commitments we still have ahead of us – with the same focus and determination.”

Measurable progress and opportunities for improvement

In 2025, the State also saw performance increases on three measurable outcomes.

Placement moves: This outcome goal is for 90% of children and youth to have one or fewer placement moves in a 12-month period.

2025 outcome: Performance increased to 84%, up from 83% in 2024. While progress is being made, the goal has not been met.

Placement moves per 1,000 days: All children and youth in custody during a 12-month period shall have a rate of placement moves that does not exceed the specified number of moves per 1,000 days in care. The goal is 4.4.

2025 outcome: Performance improved in 2025 with a rate of 6.75. This is significant progress from 7.24 in 2024.

Night-to-night and short-term placements: This practice improvement states DCF shall end the practice of night-to-night placements by the end of 2021 and end short-term placements by the end of 2023.

2025 outcome: The number of night-to-night and short-term placements decreased from 2024.

Despite progress, the report identifies three areas where the State saw a decline in performance:

Addressing mental and behavioral health needs: This commitment requires the State to address the mental and behavioral health needs of 90% of the children and youth in DCF custody.

2025 outcome: 63% of children and youth in custody with an identified mental or behavioral health need received services that were tailored to the specific needs of the youth, culturally appropriate, accessible without waitlists, provided in a setting that is most effective and responsive to needs; and monitored and adjusted, as needed, to ensure that treatment goals were being achieved and progress is being made. This is a decrease of 3% from 2024.

Provision of mental health treatment without regard to placement stability: Authorization of medically necessary mental health treatment services shall not be delayed until placement stability is achieved or otherwise link access to medically necessary mental health treatment services with placement stability.

2025 outcome: The number of youth experiencing delays in mental health services due to placement instability rose to 13%, up from 11% in 2024.

Temporary housing or failure to place (FTP): This commitment requires there are no instances where children or youth in DCF custody stay overnight in unlicensed settings.

2025 outcome: In 2025, the rate of FTP increased.

To continue making progress with the settlement obligations, DCF meets monthly with case management providers (CMP), child placing agencies and congregate care facility operators. The group collaboratively reviews settlement metrics, plans for improvements, and discusses strategies for practice improvements. The group is currently focused on ending the practice of overnight placements and creating strategies to reduce and eliminate short-term and night-to-night placement.

Strengthening focus

While some catchment areas demonstrated strong performance in 2025 with zero incidents of FTP, the majority of incidents of FTP, about 94%, occurred in area 7, which is Sedgwick County in DCF’s Wichita Region.

Sedgwick County continues to be an area of continued focus. About 28% of the children and youth in Kansas’ foster care system are from Sedgwick County. The State is committed to advancing meaningful change and achieving positive, measurable outcomes for the children and families served in this area.

To end FTP, DCF continues focusing on the cohort of youth experiencing extreme instability by identifying ways to get them the individual services they need to find stability and have a positive transition into adulthood. DCF and EmberHope are working closely to assist with the needs in Sedgwick County and are focused on expanding capacity and support.

A few highlights of work being done to support children and youth in Area 7 include building capacity and access to three Children’s Behavioral Interventionist providers that serve families involved in prevention and foster care in Sedgwick County: DCCCA, EmberHope Connections, and Mental Health America of South Central Kansas.

Area 7 has also implemented an approach in which a DCCCA Family Preservation staff member accompanies the DCF child protection specialist to a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF). This approach offers support to families who may not feel that they can care for their child following discharge from a PRTF.

In addition, Sedgwick County has more than 45 therapeutic foster homes, offering permanency options for youth with high needs. The county also initiated a behavioral health intervention team in April 2025 that has contributed to success in securing placement stability for young people. This non-case-carrying team of four staff members supports a small number of young people and provides behavioral interventions as well as meets immediate needs, such as retrieving personal belongings, hygiene items, or other necessities that help young people achieve stable placement.

“Meaningful change takes time – there are no easy fixes to some of the challenges we’re facing. But with strong community partners who care deeply and are willing to work together, we will continue facing these challenges head on and build a brighter future for children and young people in Sedgwick County,” Howard said.

The full CY 25 report can be accessed via the Center for the Study of Social Policy website.

###

The Kansas Department for Children and Families’ (DCF) mission is to protect children, strengthen families, and promote adult self-sufficiency. DCF’s 35 service centers across the state offer a wide range of support services, including food, utility, child care assistance, child support services, and employment education and training. DCF also partners with grantees to provide foster care services to children, including case planning, placement, life skills, and foster parent recruitment and training. DCF partners with organizations, communities, and other agencies to support families, children, and vulnerable adults, connecting them with resources, supports, and networks in their home communities.