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Montezuma County Social Services named distinguished performer; department reports improved outcomes across multiple measures
Summary
The county’s Social Services department reported 2024 performance highlights — including improved child‑welfare outcomes, high timeliness metrics and $1.2 million collected in child support — and said it earned the state 'distinguished performer' recognition.
Montezuma County’s Department of Social Services reported on May 27 that it was named a distinguished performer for calendar year 2024 after meeting a majority of the state’s performance measures.
Kelly, director of Montezuma County Social Services, told the Board of County Commissioners the department met multiple C‑stat (performance) targets measured by the state. Among the figures presented: adult protection services met a timeliness goal at 99% (245 of 248 required monthly contacts); child‑welfare measures included 577 referrals with 259 screened‑in assessments and 30 confirmed abuse/neglect cases (a 9% confirmation rate); 38 children were in out‑of‑home placements during the year and the department reunified 21 children with their families.
The department reported improvement in father‑engagement metrics (43.4% against a state goal of 35%), child‑welfare response timeliness (85.5% against an 84.3% goal) and family‑engagement at reunification (66.7% exceeding the 66% goal). Social Services leaders said their out‑of‑home placement rate (about 2.4%) was lower than the state average (3.1%).
Staff also reported $1.2 million collected in child support during 2024 and fraud recoupments totaling about $187,000. Economic security programs (SNAP, Medicaid/Health First Colorado, Colorado Works) met most timeliness and accuracy targets; the department said it processed thousands of changes and redeterminations and issued 1,629 EBT cards on site during the year.
Kelly credited staff for meeting 82.5% of required goals across the year, comparing favorably with prior years. The board and meeting participants recognized frontline staff by name; department leaders cited staff leads including Crystal Hollingshead (adult protection), Chris Veatch and Brenda German (child welfare), Erwin Lobato (child support/fraud) and economic security team leads Natalie Sackett, Lisa Harris and Rachel Segura.
The department said operational memos and frequent rule changes (29 operational memos in 2024) require continuous staff training and process adjustments. The board thanked staff for the reported performance and noted the county’s relative standing: 18th in the state among counties on the metrics reported.
