Marya McPherson, Vice President of Child and Family Services
In 2024, our Child and Family Services (CFS) division raised creative collaboration to a new level at DePaul. Our efforts include expansion of treatment team meetings, creation of CFS specialist positions that can work across programs, regional coverage of case management for flexibility, and enrichment of program offerings through pursuit of small grants. We provided substance use treatment and parenting education from our clinical staff to young adults in our Independent Living programs, encouraged families to participate in both foster care case management and post-adoptive supports, created counseling support for individuals with disabilities, expanded kinship care, and explored new avenues for healing such as music and play therapy.
Gary Wilburn, Vice President of Developmental Disabilities Services
In 2024, the Developmental Disabilities Services (DD) division continued to look for opportunities to develop new services, strengthen our existing services, and expand services into underserved areas. We strengthened our day support programs to offer more community involvement and social engagement for our participants. We introduced Agency-Directed Services and resumed group home services, ensuring children and adults with disabilities can be cared for in safe, supportive, and comfortable environments. We collaborated with DePaul’s CFS division to integrate counseling services into our programs, providing additional support to the individuals we serve during times of loss and crisis.
As we continue to lean on teamwork and collaboration with every life we touch at DePaul, we are confident we can make hope and belonging an accessible reality for an increasing number of people across our footprint in 2025 and for many years to come.
In this annual report, we want to take the time to reflect on the impact we’ve had together in 2024. Our success stories and positive outcomes are achieved in partnership with you: our donors, community partners, providers, and volunteers. On behalf of everyone here, we thank you for your investment in the mission of DePaul and the work of hope and belonging.