Family services shake-up

The Ministry of Education has severed ties with the heads of two of its primary family services agencies — the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) and the National Parenting Support Commission (NPSC) — reportedly to undertake a major shift in their operations, the Jamaica Observer has learnt. As part of that shake-up, chief executive officer of the CPFSA Laurette Adams-Thomas, who took the helm of the agency in October 2023, will demit office next month. In a brief response to the Observer, Adams-Thomas said her contract expires on October 1, 2026 and she was “officially notified on July 23, 2026” that it would “not be renewed”. The CPFSA is an executive agency which was formed from the merger of the Child Development Agency (CDA) and the Office of Children’s Registry (OCR). Adams-Thomas, an educator and social worker, took over its leadership following an eight-year stint as general manager of the largest infirmary in the Caribbean — Jamaica’s Golden Age Home — where she had oversight responsibly for protection and welfare services for more than 450 indigent people from the parishes of Kingston and St Andrew. Prior to assuming that position, she was interim executive director/registrar at the OCR, where her focus was centred on ensuring that an effective system was maintained to facilitate the confidential receipt, assessment, and referral of reports of known or suspected cases of child abuse.

She holds a master’s degree in business administration, bachelor of science in human resource management, and a number of certifications in leadership, corporate governance and strategic planning. In the meantime, the Observer was reliably informed on Monday that NPSC CEO Kaysia Kerr “is no longer with” the entity. Efforts to get an official response from Kerr were unsuccessful. A pre-recorded message on her personal mobile phone directed all callers with queries related to the commission to contact the education ministry or the commission itself. A source with knowledge of the development said the ministry had decided to disengage with Kerr due to a breakdown in relations. She took the helm of the commission in 2017, succeeding Dr Patrece Charles. In an interview with the Observer at the time, Kerr said she hoped to craft and design programmes for parents and children of all 13 categories of disabilities, move the organisation out of eastern Jamaica to serve other parishes, take some of the programmes internationally, and get the unit to a stage where it generates income.

Kaysia Kerr, former National Parenting Support Commission head (Photo: JIS)

The former NPSC head has a solid background in education and has completed studies in business and professional management at Nova Southeastern University, along with a first degree in special education and a master’s in administration and supervision from Western Carolina University. The commission coordinates a wide range of services for parents and also delivers programmes that build parenting skills and promote parental involvement in education. The Government of Jamaica mandated the establishment of the NPSC in response to the 2004 task force report on the status of education in Jamaica. The NPSC began operating in January 2013.