Another item likely to be on the agenda of the next legislative session.
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At a time of heightened public scrutiny of Texas’ embattled child welfare agency, Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday appointed new leadership of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.
Hank Whitman, a former chief of the Texas Rangers, a state law enforcement agency, will be the department’s new commissioner. One of his top lieutenants will be Kristene Blackstone, a former caseworker with experience in Child Protective Services and the attorney general’s child support division, who will serve as Assistant Commissioner of Child Protective Services. Both will start at the agency on May 1.
Abbott said Monday that the new appointments marked the beginning of reforms for Child Protective Services.
"The status quo at CPS is unacceptable," he said in a prepared statement. "I’ve insisted on overhauling a broken system, and I applaud the leadership changes that will provide a new direction and focus that puts protecting children first."
