West Virginia’s first ombudsman for state’s heavily burdened foster care system resigns

By LEAH WILLINGHAM
Associated Press

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The first ombudsman of West Virginia’s heavily burdened foster care system has resigned. Pamela Woodman-Kaehler’s resignation will take effect June 6. The state Department of Health announced her planned departure Wednesday. Woodman-Kaehler said she was pursuing a new opportunity but didn’t give more details. The ombudsman position was created in 2019 to help investigate complaints and collect data about the state’s foster care system. That same year the state faced a massive class-action lawsuit on behalf of foster care children alleging that their needs were going unmet because of a shortage of case workers and a lack of mental health support.