La Crosse County’s Family & Children’s Section supports families in difficult situations and works to keep children safe while helping families stay together whenever possible.

The section, managed by Tracy Puent, oversees Child Protective Services (CPS) and the Western Regional Adolescent Services Unit. CPS is organized into units that respond to child safety concerns from the first call to case closure.

How it works:

• Access Unit: The community’s gateway to CPS. Mandated reporters, parents, or community members call with safety concerns. Staff gather information about risks and strengths before deciding whether a case should move forward.
• Initial Assessment: If screened in, social workers have up to 60 days to assess safety and work with families. “Our first goal is always to keep kids safe in their home whenever that’s possible,” Puent said.
• Ongoing Services: For families needing longer support, staff from Ongoing Services (pictured) work with them until cases are closed. When reunification isn't possible, staff assist in securing permanency with relatives, like-kin, or foster caregivers.
• Permanency Resources: This team licenses foster homes, supports kinship care, and helps locate relatives and trusted adults. “Kids do better with people they know,” Puent said. “That sense of belonging matters.”
• Family Interaction Services: Staff supervise family visits, transport children, and help with parenting skills.

The field has shifted toward family preservation over the past few decades. Research and federal policy now emphasizes keeping children connected to family when safe to do so. “What we’ve learned is that kids have better long‑term outcomes when they stay with family or people they know,” Puent said.

By the numbers:

• About 42 staff work in CPS, which is part of La Crosse County Human Services.

• Ongoing workers carry approximately 10–12 cases each.

• Initial assessment workers are typically assigned 6–8 new assessments per month.

• Five youth are currently in group homes or residential care, which are the most restrictive and expensive options.

Puent (pictured) said one of the biggest myths is that CPS is “out to take kids.” “That’s the exact opposite of what we want,” she said. “Removal is never our first step. We’re here to help families in crisis, not break them apart.”

Staff regularly work in high‑stress situations and aren’t always welcomed. “People often don’t want us there, and that’s hard because we want to help” Puent said. The department supports workers through supervision, debriefing, and strong team relationships.

But there are powerful moments too. “The relationships keep you going,” she said. “To see a family reunify or have someone you worked with years ago reach back out — that’s incredibly meaningful.”

Long-Term Care Director Appointed

Audra Martine has been appointed as La Crosse County’s new Director of Long Term Care Services effective August 7.

Martine previously served as Director of the La Crosse County Health Department, Deputy Director of the Human Services Department, and Manager of the County’s Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC). She holds a master’s degree in Management and Health and Human Services Administration from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota. She will lead La Crosse County’s long-term care campuses at Hillview and Lakeview, which provide a range of high-quality care options for older adults (you can read our 2025 Long Term Care Impact Report here).

Martine succeeds Wanda Plachecki, who is retiring. Plachecki (pictured below) was recognized by the County Board earlier this month for her decades of distinguished service to La Crosse County.

Homelessness Decline, Housing Success

In June, our county’s homelessness count dropped from 222 to 213, a 28% decrease from the peak in November 2024. Pathways Home is our city–county plan to reduce homelessness. Since it launched in 2024, 339 people have been housed, and 90% remain housed.

Two examples show Pathways Home is working:

• At the Collective on Fourth, 16 of 17 leases rented to people who had experienced homelessness a year ago have been renewed.
• At Park Lane Studios, the 10 apartments funded by La Crosse County at Hillview have shown strong progress. Six residents moved in directly from homelessness and four from temporary shelter. Within the first three months, 70% contributed to rent and 60% were employed or enrolled in higher education.

Pathways Home succeeds by pairing housing with effective services. But to continue reducing homelessness, we need funding to add more units. Please consider making a minimum donation of $10 to the Pathways Held Lease and Rent Support Fund at La Crosse Area Community Foundation here.

5 Stars for Hillview

Hillview Health Care Center has received a five-star rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the highest available. The campus, located on the south side of La Crosse, recently completed a $19.6 million renovation.

The updated campus now includes a range of long-term care options, with beautiful new common areas, private rooms, updates throughout, and great care from our dedicated staff. If you're interested in learning more or setting up a tour, reach out to Kim Haskey at khaskey@lacrossecounty.org, or call 608-519-9368.

Support a Great Cause

Our Human Services Family & Children’s Section is hosting a Brat Barn Fundraiser on Friday, July 17 at the Copeland Ave. Festival Foods from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. (or until sold out). Come grab lunch or dinner and support a great cause. All proceeds help children and families with necessities and extracurricular expenses. If you’d like brats delivered to your workplace, email abowe@lacrossecounty.org by 10 a.m. on Friday, July 17 to schedule a group delivery.

Our Highway crews are busy this month, mowing along about 280 miles of county roads (like County Highway VV pictured above) and chip‑sealing 20 miles to keep our highway system in good shape.

Input Needed: Regional Transit Survey

The La Crosse Area Planning Committee is updating its regional transit plan, and your feedback is needed. Your input will help guide future transit policies and priorities. Whether you ride transit every day, occasionally, or not at all, your perspective is important and will help inform the direction of transit in our community. Take the short survey here.

County Board Action Items

The County Board will vote this Thursday, July 16, on a proposal to begin steps to discontinue the SMRT (Scenic Mississippi Regional Transit) bus service.

The Board will also consider accepting $629,000 in state funding to support six economic support positions across the eight‑county Western Region for Economic Assistance. Two of these positions will be at La Crosse County Human Services. The positions will focus on FoodShare quality assurance. The state funding is intended to help keep error rates low and avoid new federal penalties.

View the full agenda for Thursday’s monthly board meeting, including the link to watch virtually, here.

Workforce Center Grand Opening

Community members came together to celebrate the Grand Opening of the Judy Corbett Hutchens Workforce Center on the northside of La Crosse recently. The center, part of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse, will offer quality programming to young people ages 6-18 on a range of career paths.

State-of-the-art learning spaces include an innovation lab, construction/automotive lab, finance/entrepreneurship center, media lab, life skills lab and more. La Crosse County proudly supported the project with $2 million in funding.

Health Dept Talks Prevention

Health Educators from the La Crosse County Health Department recently partnered with the La Crosse Police Department to brief law enforcement on local prevention efforts related to alcohol, tobacco, and hemp‑derived THC. The session covered current product trends, health impacts, and how industry marketing targets youth, along with an overview of local strategies to address these issues.

Presenters also reviewed key policies, including the legal purchasing age of 21 for tobacco and hemp‑derived THC, and explained how the WI Wins program conducts annual tobacco compliance checks focused on education to reduce youth access. More information is available on the Health Department website under Community Initiatives.