6th Annual CSLN Partnership Awards Presented by Host State Rhode Island
This year the CSLN Partnership Awards were held on May 22nd during the 10th Annual Rhode Island Child Support Conference. Members of Rhode Island’s Human Services Departments came together to discuss new initiatives and recap 2013's efforts. Ms. Sharon A. Santilli, IV-D Director of Rhode Island Child Support Services and Administrator of the Child Support Lien Network, proudly presented the CSLN Partnership Awards to four recipients in recognition of their exceptional efforts.
Mr. Joseph Pentecost, Manager-Claims Operations, accepted the CSLN Partnership Award on behalf of Cincinnati Insurance Company. He expressed his admiration for the child support community and commended the passion for their work even when fiscal times are tough. The CSLN liens have become part of Cincinnati’s workflow, according to Mr. Pentecost, and they have realized how vital their participation in the CSLN program is to dedicated child support employees and the families they assist. Cincinnati Insurance Company has contributed over 4,400 matches to CSLN resulting in some outstanding intercepts, an estimated $9.2 million in child support collections! In addition to their consistent and significant contributions over the years, Cincinnati Insurance Company recently provided the program with its highest, single match collection in the amount of $265,000! This substantial intercept eliminated the entire arrears amount for two families in the State of Illinois.
Ms. Wanda Salter, Supervisor of the Special Operations Section, and Ms. Jessica Cannon, Business Operations Specialist, of the Georgia Division of Child Support Services accepted the CSLN Partnership Award for a state member. Ms. Salter said, “We love CSLN, and we love George, the DCSS/CSLN partnership works; we know the money is there and we want to get the money for families we serve.” CSLN applauds Georgia’s dedication to working their matches despite limited resources and agrees with Ms. Salter when she said, “It’s all about partnership.” Ms. Salter and Ms. Cannon both discussed their team’s role in processing the CSLN matches. Ms. Cannon’s group focuses on the optimization of the workflow and Ms. Salter’s team works the matches to maximize collections. Their collaborative approach paid off with a notable increase of an additional $1 million collected from CSLN matches in late 2013.
Mr. David Castagnola of the Nevada Child Support Enforcement Division received the John F. Murphy Memorial Award, which recognizes an individual who exhibits an exceptional dedication to the CSLN program and the partners it serves.
Mr. Castagnola described his background as a personal injury adjuster before working for the State of Nevada. This background provided him with a unique perspective and allowed him to always see the potential of CSLN when he first became involved with the program in 2003. Committed to that belief, for ten years he diligently raised support for the value and benefits of CSLN, managing to convince Nevada to rejoin the Network in 2013 with great results. Upon acceptance of his award, Mr. Castagnola once again displayed his enthusiasm and confidence in CSLN when he stated, “It’s a great program that helps families, and states would be foolish not to participate.”
Mr. Castagnola is a unique recipient not only because of his private and public professional background, but also because he had several opportunities to meet and interact with Jack Murphy, the CSLN founder and former Rhode Island Child Support Director. Honored to receive the award, he said, “Mr. Murphy always went out of his way to make me feel welcome” at industry conferences and events, and it was clear Mr. Castagnola shared the respect the child support community had for Jack Murphy.
CSLN looks forward to helping Nevada succeed and grow its collections in their efforts to support many more families to “achieve their highest levels of self-sufficiency.”
The Child Support Lien Network is fortunate to work with these organizations and individuals to assist them in achieving the mission and goals of its member states. We look forward to continuing this collaborative effort and improving the success of the program to assist our nation’s children and families achieve financial stability.
Congratulations, and a sincere thank you to all the deserving recipients of the 2014 CSLN Partnership Awards!