Spotsylvania Social Services Suspends Four "Non-Mandated" Programs
Department says increased caseloads are to blame; local organizations are concerned about addressing the county's growing needs for children and families.
By Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
Email Adele
To Ashley Woodcock, the level of need among Spotsylvania County’s children and youth is already scary.
“Just last year, I was thinking about how much need we have,” said Woodcock, the founder of Wyatt’s Closet, a Spotsylvania nonprofit that provides food, clothing, personal hygiene products, and school supplies to county youth. “And now this.”
Last month, the county Department of Social Services announced that it would be suspending—as of July 1—four “non-mandated” assistance programs, citing “significant staffing shortages” along with “rising caseloads and workloads.”
The suspended programs include the Back-to-School Backpack event, Thanksgiving Turkey Boxes, the Holiday Hope program, and the Easter Basket Project.
A June 15 letter to program participants states, “As we refocus our limited resources, we have made the difficult decision to temporarily suspend all non-mandated programs DSS currently provides.”
The letter continues, “We know these programs are appreciated and valued by our community. We wanted to ensure we communicated out to you, so you can plan accordingly and seek other resources and/or opportunities in the community, if needed.”
Current vacancies
According to information provided by Spotsylvania County spokeswoman Michelle McGinnis, there were 10 vacancies within the department as of July 15.
That’s actually fewer vacancies than in previous years—in December of 2023, there were 15, and in December of 2022, there were 19.
The current vacancies include five family service workers, a bilingual aide, a director of administrative services, a training specialist, and a senior eligibility worker.
All of the family service worker positions became vacant in June and July of this year, and the other positions became vacant in January, April, and May of this year. The director of administrative services position has been vacant since December.
McGinnis said it takes the county an average of 62 days to fill vacant positions.
There are 138 full-time funded positions in the DSS budget for the current fiscal year (FY 2025). The county increased the number of full-time funded positions by seven between fiscal years 2020 and 2021, and by 18 between fiscal years 2021 and 2022.
The number of funded positions only increased by three between 2023 and 2024.
Increasing caseloads
While the number of vacancies is lower than in previous years, according to information provided by the county, the number of cases per program offered by DSS has risen, especially in the areas of childcare and the Virginia Initiative for Employment and Work program.
Participation in VIEW is required for recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
The number of childcare and VIEW cases increased by 40% and 151%, respectively, between fiscal years 2022 and 2023.
Childcare cases increased by 129% between 2021 and 2022.
As the population in Spotsylvania increases, the needs of the community also increase, McGinnis said.
“Specifically, there was a large surge in county families and individuals in need of Medicaid and other services during the pandemic,” she said. “The state made the assumption that once the pandemic was over, the number of families and individuals qualifying for Medicaid would drop and caseloads would return to baseline pre-pandemic levels. That did not occur as expected, and Medicaid cases remain at pandemic levels.”
According to information provided by the county, the average number of Medicaid Assistance caseloads increased by 11.5% in fiscal year 2023, 14.6% in fiscal year 2022, and 14.3% in fiscal year 2021.
McGinnis said that in response to the increase in Medicaid cases, the DSS “has been forced to reallocate resources to ensure its highest-risk areas are fully staffed.”
“The department hopes to resume its nonmandated programs in the future, once staffing levels have stabilized,” she said.
Last fiscal year, the four programs being suspended provided aid to a total of 2,060 county families. The most impactful program is Holiday Hope, which was extended to 1,319 families.
Two hundred and ninety-three children received backpacks and school supplies as part of the back-to-school event.
‘Isn’t someone filling that need?’
Woodcock founded her organization in 2022, as a way to honor her son, who passed away. She works with foster care parents and the school division’s social workers to provide needed items to families.
“Last year, we provided assistance to 19 schools in our county with snacks, school supplies, toiletries, and clothing,” Woodcock said.
She learned about the suspension of the four DSS programs through social media.
“What’s concerning about it is that, at least from our perspective, we have a hard time meeting the need anyway,” she said. “There are so many who still need assistance. So by losing this resource, we have even more kids who are going to need help.”
With school starting in two weeks, Woodcock’s priority now is to collect as many backpacks filled with school supplies as possible.
“Right now, we have 50 ready to be distributed to schools, but I would love to see that be a lot more,” she said.
She is also working to spread awareness.
“In the community, I’ve heard a lot of people say, ‘Well, isn't there another organization that helps does this? Isn’t someone filling that need?’ Woodcock said. “While we have organizations that can provide some assistance, what I’m finding is that everybody is struggling for resources to provide the level of assistance that we need in the county.”
Editor’s Note: Visit the Wyatt’s Closet website to find out how to support the organization.
Follow us on Facebook | Instagram | YouTube
Local Obituaries
To view local obituaries or to send a note to family and loved ones, please visit our website at the link that follows.
Support Award-winning, Locally Focused Journalism
The FXBG Advance cuts through the talking points to deliver both incisive and informative news about the issues, people, and organizations that daily affect your life. And we do it in a multi-partisan format that has no equal in this region. Over the past month, our reporting was:
First to report on a Spotsylvania School teacher arrested for bringing drugs onto campus.
First to report on new facility fees leveled by MWHC on patient bills.
First to detail controversial traffic numbers submitted by Stafford staff on the Buc-ee’s project
Provided extensive coverage of the cellphone bans that are sweeping local school districts.
And so much more, like Clay Jones, Drew Gallagher, Hank Silverberg, and more.
For just $8 a month, you can help support top-flight journalism that puts people over policies.
Your contributions 100% support our journalists.
Help us as we continue to grow!