GRIFFIN – Local law enforcement, judges, foster parents, foster youth, legislators, media partners, faith-based organizations, agency staff and the public will all have the opportunity to meet with the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) leadership team early next week. The two-day meetings are designed to promote the State of Hope initiative and to encourage increased collaboration between the Division, nonprofits, businesses, and other community groups that focus on prevention.

The upcoming event called “Destination Hope”, intended to further establish and renew existing partnerships, will begin in the Griffin area on Oct. 29. The series of sessions will serve as an opportunity for DFCS Interim Director, Tom Rawlings, to conduct statewide visits to meet with stakeholders and the public at large, as well as to further engage with new State of Hope sites.

The event seeks to gather feedback from agency staff and stakeholders across the state as the agency works to build consensus on a plan to further expand Georgia’s State of Hope, a grass-roots, innovative effort that focuses on one or more of the four opportunities for hope: Education, being/becoming Trauma-Informed, Quality Caregiving and Economic Self-Sufficiency. These are the priority areas that DFCS believes will have the greatest impact on keeping children safe, strengthening families and empowering communities.

Led by DFCS, in partnership with Georgia State University (Child Welfare Training Collaborative) and Georgia Family Connection, the State of Hope aims to transform Georgia into a collection of communities where children and families have the support they need to thrive and the security to be hopeful about their future.