It is one thing for an agency head to hunker down in the face of a crisis. But Department of Children and Families chief Kathleen Kearney was displaying a troubling bunker mentality long before the public ever heard of Rilya Wilson, the young Miami girl missing from state care for more than a year. Whether Kearney stays or goes -- Gov. Jeb Bush and his blue-ribbon panel stand behind her, despite repeated calls for her resignation -- DCF needs to adopt a more open way of doing business.

In many ways, Florida is lucky to have Kearney in one of the hardest jobs in state government. A tough and compassionate juvenile judge before taking over at DCF, she has brought an unparalleled knowledge and passion to the job. But with no prior political experience, Kearney has cultivated a style -- and an atmosphere at DCF -- that is unduly resistant to oversight or recommendations from outside groups. As she and Bush tout the community-based model, Kearney has worked to consolidate her own control and, according to witnesses before the blue-ribbon panel, doesn't take kindly to those who dare to challenge her.

Even the panel chided Kearney, in its report issued Tuesday: "Judge Kearney seems to have a problem greater than she acknowledges in communicating with provider agencies in a spirit of partnership."

The Miami judge on Rilya's case was far more blunt in setting Kearney straight. DCF's attorneys had refused to tell the judge where the agency put Rilya's sister, contending that DCF had "sole authority" over foster placements. But, with backing from the 3rd District Court of Appeal, the judge recently made it clear, in no uncertain terms, that ultimate authority over child welfare rests with the courts, not DCF. She's right, of course. Courts provide a valuable check on DCF's power and allow the public to witness -- and judge for itself -- how children are faring in the system.

Kearney has tried to isolate DCF from outside review in other ways. Early on, she helped dismantle the local health and human services boards and has otherwise sought to block citizen review of foster records. She recently insisted on previewing reports of the statewide Death Review Team, which examines cases of children who die from abuse or neglect -- then jeopardized the team's work by failing to provide records on time. She has intimidated service providers and undercut attempts to provide more guardians ad litem and attorneys for children, according to some lawmakers and advocates.

"The department has a bunker mentality, and it's them against the rest of the world," said Chris Zawisza, who heads the Children First Project at Fort Lauderdale's Nova Southeastern University. "This is the first administration in all my time that's been this way."

No matter what her future holds, Kearney does neither herself -- nor the children she is charged with protecting -- any good by treating DCF as her personal, walled-off kingdom.

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