Cris Weatherford
Graham County Department of Social Services Director Chris Weatherford plans to use his seat on a statewide task force, to help solve the backlog of court dates plaguing the foster care system in western North Carolina and across the sate.
Weatherford announced at the department’s Feb. 9 meeting that he had been appointed to serve on the state’s permanency design team, looking at permanent solutions for youth in the foster system. According to data Weatherford showed at a previous meeting, cases in Graham County average less than one court date a month.
“We’re starting to have a little traction in that,” Weatherford said. “We’re actually starting to talk about some issues that we can work on at the county and state level, and what some of the new state policies are looking like that are going to come out.” He said he planned to use the position to seek solutions to the court issues.
“I’m using some of the connections in this permanency design teem to reach into some of the committees that operate at the state level … I had a good conversation last week with somebody that sits in on that committee,” Weatherford said.
He said the person was going to pass the data around within the committee, to see if it was possible to work toward any kind of solution or to allow Weatherford to sit in on some of the meetings.
“I’m trying to use those connections and do that networking to get all of the right sets of ears, and to find out how they can help us,” Weatherford stated.