RELEASE: September 23, 2005

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TRENTON -- Department of Human Services, Office of Children's Services Assistant Commissioner Edward E. Cotton, who has been instrumental in implementing the state's massive child welfare reform effort, has announced his decision to leave the agency effective November 1.

Cotton took over the helm of the OCS Division of Youth and Family Services, the state's primary child protection agency, in July 2003, shortly after the state signed an agreement to settle a class action suit that had been filed against the agency in 1999 by a New York-based child advocacy organization.

“Ed Cotton has worked tirelessly to improve the lives of countless thousands of vulnerable children and at-risk families in the state of New Jersey and is leaving behind a system that is significantly improved as a result of his efforts,” said DHS Commissioner James M. Davy.

During Cotton's tenure, the number of caseworkers assigned to DYFS increased by more than 500 to some 2,000 workers, reducing caseloads from an average of 22 families per worker to about 14.5 families per worker today.

In addition, Cotton launched the state's first 24-hour, fully-staffed, centralized child abuse reporting hotline, hired specially trained investigators to handle child abuse and neglect investigations, reduced the length of time that so-called “boarder babies” remain in hospitals awaiting foster placements, and implemented a sweeping new case practice model that emphasizes child safety and links families to needed services and supports.

“Our efforts to improve our child welfare system have benefited from Ed Cotton's knowledge of child welfare case practice as well his commitment to child safety and family stability,” said Kathi Way , OCS Deputy Commissioner.

Way said she expects to name an interim administrator for DYFS within the next two weeks and noted that the OCS is undergoing a significant restructuring as a result of input from the court-appointed Child Welfare Panel that is monitoring the state's reform efforts. Cotton will be assisting the new administrator to ensure a smooth transition. As a result of the restructuring, said Way, many of the administrative functions currently overseen by DYFS will be dispersed among other offices within OCS.

“Working as part of a team reforming New Jersey 's child welfare system has been among the most exciting and the most challenging assignments of my career and I have been honored to work with many energetic, committed and dedicated people during the last 27 months,” said Cotton. “But I have been in government service for more than 30 years and in child welfare operations for nearly that entire time. So I am looking forward to spending more time with my family and pursuing other career options.”

Cotton said he feels particularly proud of the DYFS field staff “who deserve credit for their hard work, their dedication and for their largely unheralded efforts to make life better for New Jersey's children each and every day.”

Before his appointment as DYFS director in July 2003, Cotton was the Administrator of Child and Family Services, for the Nevada Department of Human Resources where he was responsible for all children's programs, including child protection, child welfare, juvenile justice, and children's mental health.

Prior to working for the Nevada child welfare system, he worked for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services for 22 years. During his tenure in Illinois , Cotton held the positions of: caseworker, child protective investigator, field supervisor, child welfare manager, ultimately rising to the position of Deputy Director of the Division of Child Protection.

He is also a single parent of four sons and has been a foster and adoptive parent for children with special needs for more than 25 years, caring for more than 30 foster children during that time.

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