Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson has signed an order to establish the Supreme Court Council on Child Protection and Maltreatment Prevention. The council, which will focus on reviewing policies and making recommendations for child welfare improvements, has appointed its members.
Associate Justice Anne McKeig is named as the designee of the chief justice and will chair the council from now until January 15, 2026. Chief Justice Hudson praised McKeig's dedication to child welfare, stating that her experience will be "invaluable to everyone on the Council and to the people of Minnesota."
The newly formed council includes a diverse group of professionals such as Ann Ahlstrom, Chair of the Minnesota Guardian Ad Litem Program Board; Libby Bergman, Founder and Executive Director of Family Enhancement Center; Ethel Chitseko, Lead Peer Recovery Specialist at Recovery is Happening; Misty Coonce, Ombudsman for Foster Youth; Nikki Farago, Deputy Commissioner at Minnesota Department of Human Services; Leonard Fineday from Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe; Neal Gaalswyk from Cass County; Vickie Goulette with extensive state and county work experience in child welfare; Anne Gueinzius from Children’s Law Center of Minnesota; Dr. Mark Hudson from Midwest Children's Resource Center; Erin Johnson from Washington County Attorney’s Office; Anthony Kotschevar from Stearns County Sheriff’s Office; Tracie LaLiberte from University of Minnesota's Multidisciplinary Institute for Child Welfare; Marcia Milliken from Minnesota Children's Alliance; William C. Moyers from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation; Jennifer L. Nelson, a managing attorney in Minnesota's 9th Judicial District Public Defender office; Erika Randall with Guardian ad Litem Program in 6th and 9th Districts; Sondra Samuels from Northside Achievement Zone; Veronica Sanchez as STAY in The Community Life Coach at Division of Indian Work; Mallory Stoll, family attorney at Blahnik, Prchal & Stoll PLLC.; Shan Wang as Assistant Chief Judge in Stearns County's 7th Judicial District court system.
Advisors include Mike Scholl, Senior Director – Strategic Consulting at Casey Family Programs and Victor Vieth, Chief Program Officer for Education and Research at Zero Abuse Project.
Established by the Minnesota Legislature during the 2024 session, this council aims to review laws related to children in protection systems while recognizing Tribal Nations' sovereignty concerning their children's political status. By July 15 next year they are expected to submit a progress report detailing outcomes for children within these frameworks along with further recommendations aimed towards improvement before finalizing comprehensive blueprints due January following two years later into this initiative.