ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Governor Larry Hogan was today named “Champion for Maryland Children and Families” by the Local Management Boards (LMBs) representing Maryland’s 24 jurisdictions. Established during the mid-1990s, Maryland’s Local Management Boards were created to empower communities and determine how best to provide services for local children and families.
“Our administration continues to champion legislation and best practices to protect our children and support our families in order to make our state a place where everyone can thrive,” said Governor Hogan. “Maryland’s local management boards serve as valued partners to help us plan, implement, and monitor children and family services. I am truly humbled and honored to receive this award.”
The governor is the inaugural recipient of the award, which was presented at a ceremony in Annapolis held in conjunction with the Governor’s Office for Children (GOC). GOC promotes the well-being of Maryland’s children, youth, and families through data-driven policies and collective solutions in support of the governor’s vision for strong economic opportunity in healthy, safe, and thriving communities. The LMBs are key partners in identifying and promoting these opportunities in their local communities.
LMB Chairwoman Pamela Brown cited advances for Maryland children and families – particularly in the areas of homelessness, hunger, and aiding disconnected youth – under Governor Hogan’s leadership. She also noted recent Hogan administration legislative initiatives to improve education and health care access, as well as urgently addressing opioid abuse and public safety.
“Governor Hogan was the perfect choice for the inaugural award,” said Chairwoman Brown. “His vision of opportunity for all Marylanders includes lifting up struggling families. His work through the children’s cabinet has helped us build local community plans that focus on special populations, which has made a huge difference to the strategic focus of our work.”
Vernon Osborne, a formerly disconnected youth who completed Youth Healthworks in Anne Arundel County, presented the governor with the award.
“On behalf of the Partnership for Children and Families and the LMBs all around, thank you, Governor Hogan, for changing my life,” said Osborne.
Maryland’s 24 LMBs focus on the Hogan administration’s mission to support the state’s most vulnerable populations by helping disconnected youth reconnect to school, work, and community; addressing the impact of incarceration for families; and identifying and assisting homeless youth. To date, the LMBs have accomplished many positive developments, including leading the way in returning and diverting children from out-of-state residential placements; administering funding for interagency services provided to children at-risk of out-of-home placements; increasing collaboration between local stakeholders and agencies serving children and families; and serving as the coordinating and administering agency for programs that serve the community.