Stephanie Metcalf-Clark

Transitioned from the Sheriff's Office to the Department of Children and Families and remained in similar position.

Developed and Implemented the Substance Exposed Newborn Unit in HIllsborough County. Supervised investigators as they completed highly specialized investigations. Collaborated with local hospitals and service providers to complete investigations and make safety decisions.

• Provide supervision for a unit of 5 Child Protection Investigators (CPI)
• Ensure that all investigations are compliant with Florida State Statutes Chapter 39 and Department of Children and Families Administrative code
• Provide supervision to ensure that investigations are completed timely and documentation is thorough to support the investigative outcome. Support and provide coaching around safety decisions with the goal of keeping children safe and providing the appropriate level of services for families. Ensure that the investigators are identifying risk factors and acting or providing education to mitigate the risks. These include unsafe sleeping arrangements as well as intervention services for children with possible developmental delays.
• Respond with Investigators to investigate cases involving a child death and other complicated high-risk cases
• Assign new cases as they are received and ensure that distribution is fair and even while considering specific case issues
• Mentor Investigators and assist them in gaining new skills and support them in reaching their career goals. This includes maintaining documentation of achievements and opportunities for growth
• Providing recognition or progressive discipline as appropriate and providing annual evaluations
• Plan on-call schedules; approve vacations; and other time off to ensure that proper staff levels are maintained
• Handling complaints made by the public as well as other professionals.
• Corroborate with community partners including lawyers, doctors, service providers, law enforcement, schools, and case management on both systemic processes as well as on individual cases.

• Worked with doctors, mental health professionals, teachers, law enforcement, and other professionals to investigate allegations of child abuse, neglect, abandonment, and exploitation received through the Florida Abuse
• Successfully interacted and Interviewed people from all different socio-economic backgrounds and levels of education
• Gathered and assessed information from multiple sources to make decisions regarding safety planning and child safety
• Documented activities and observations of home environment, behavior, and family interactions
• 6 years of experience training new Investigators
• Testified in Dependency Court and Family Court regarding child safety and compliance with referrals to community-based care providers.