A DoD watchdog says poor communication during military daycare abuse investigations undermines staffing, parent trust and child care availability.
The Defense Department’s top watchdog is pressing military officials to be more transparent when investigating claims of abuse at department-run daycares, arguing that child care staff should be more involved in the review process.
A DoD inspector general report published July 2 found that while the armed forces have policies in place for how abuse investigations should be run, those who work in the programs affecting child development centers (CDCs) aren’t sure how the reviews work or what comes next.
That lack of communication causes confusion among parents and staff that can hurt daycare availability, families’ trust and, ultimately, military readiness, the watchdog said.
“Excluding [child and youth program] personnel from [administrative review] proceedings without notifying them of determinations regarding child abuse allegations at CDCs could negatively impact CDC staffing and undermine [DoD’s] coordinated response to child abuse allegations,” investigators said in the report. “Specifically, the lack of … information and notification could prevent timely personnel and staffing decisions, leading to understaffed CDCs and limited operational capacity.”
DoD cares for around 210,000 children between birth and age 12 at military-run facilities and in families’ homes, making it the world’s largest employer-sponsored child care program.
When an allegation of child abuse arises against a caregiver, they are immediately barred from working with children and investigated by a panel called an incident determination committee. Once the committee decides whether a claim qualifies as child abuse or neglect, it’s up to the service’s child and youth program to decide whether the provider should return to work or be reassigned or fired.
But the DoD inspector general visited 10 daycares across five installations and found that child and youth program employees weren’t typically included in the review meetings. And while Army and Navy staff were kept apprised of a panel’s decision, Air Force and Marine Corps staff were not, investigators said.
What’s more, Marine Corps personnel told the watchdog a daycare can decide to bring back an employee under investigation after their review is done, but before the committee issues a decision on whether an allegation amounts to child abuse.
“This action taken by the Marine Corps CDC may risk returning a CDC employee to duty prior to the [decision],” investigators wrote. “Additionally, this situation is particularly detrimental when employees are held out of the CDC for extended periods … and CDCs are unable to make staff retention decisions.”
To address the problem, the department needs clear rules for involving child and youth program personnel in the review process and informing them of an investigation’s outcome, the watchdog said.
The inspector general also recommended DoD put together a guide to the review process that would walk parents, guardians and department employees through each step of an investigation, explain what can happen once a review committee makes a decision and provide a point of contact for further questions. The department said it plans to issue a guide by March 2027.
Investigators also encouraged the Department of the Air Force to resume issuing written updates on those decisions. The service disagreed, and said it was waiting on DoD’s assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs to put out a memo clarifying whether verbal notification is enough.
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