Darrell Missey grew up in a loving home with his parents and two younger sisters. But his mom, who was a “wonderful and brilliant” person, suffered from mental illness. And one day, a severe episode from her bipolar disorder led to an incident that could have split the family apart. Had the state removed the children from the home because of concerns about instability within the family, it would have changed the trajectory of Missey’s life, as well as his siblings. Luckily, he says, they were able to stay together and make it work. This is the story that guides Missey’s work as the director of Missouri’s Children’s Division, the leader of Missouri’s long-troubled Children’s Division. Missey envisions a system that prioritizes keeping families together. The state has among the highest number of children in foster care per capita nationwide. On the last day of 2021, there were 14,137 kids in care, which represented a 34 percent increase from a decade earlier. A former juvenile court ...