Policy & Practice | Spring 2024

cioto County, pronounced “sigh oh-tah,” is the largest county, geographically, in the state of Ohio. It sits at the southern tip of the state on the Ohio River and just across a bridge from Kentucky. It’s a beautiful place, heavily forested and awash with state parks and rec reational areas. It was home to an NFL team in the 1930s that would go on to become the Detroit Lions. It’s the birthplace of Branch Rickey, the executive credited with breaking the color line in major league baseball and signing Jackie Robinson. The county seat, Portsmouth, is well-known for its annual “River Days” celebration every Labor Day weekend and has a magnificent river walk that celebrates the history of the town. If you visit, be sure to have breakfast at Patty’s Inn on Clay St. It’s among the best places to catch up about the goings-on around town. By Molly Tierney S

Scioto is also split down the middle by a notorious drug corridor. Over the years, addiction has taken its evil grip on the com munity in every way you can imagine. In reaction, the county became home to a large number of treatment centers. That meant more people who are struggling with addic tion moved there to live—some of whom succeeded, and others who relapsed. It wasn’t long before the consequences of addiction at this scale made their way into child welfare. In 2019, child welfare was a stand-alone agency with a caseload on a precipitous rise. It was not resourced for the down stream effect of addiction: a spike in the child welfare caseload. The budget plan did not contemplate the expanded demand for services, so there was not enough funding and not enough staff. Meanwhile, case managers lacked adequate training for their roles.