, Protecting Arizona's ChildrenArizona Attorney General Terry Goddard

Guiding Values

adult hand holding an infant handThe Arizona DEC Program is guided by and promotes the following values:

Safety
We relentlessly pursue the end of drug abuse to prevent children from experiencing the physical, emotional and psychological damage that exposure to drug environments causes.

We enhance the safety of children by removing them from dangerous drug environments and providing them with appropriate follow-up care and services. We return or place children in family environments that are completely free of dangerous drugs.

Collaboration
We encourage the participation of everyone to actively pursue the end of social tolerance to the abuse of dangerous drugs. We have formed alliances, partnerships and organizations across all government and private services to ensure that appropriate tools and resources exist to identify, remove and treat children in dangerous drug-abuse environments. We have identified and implement multidisciplinary services and strategies necessary to break the cycle of drug abuse.

Dedication
We hold ourselves accountable to appropriately provide the services necessary to accomplish the mission of the Arizona DEC Program. We vigorously pursue the institutionalization of the Arizona DEC Program. We continually evaluate the effectiveness of our efforts to ensure the Arizona DEC Program's mission is achieved.

Adapted from the National Steering Committee for the Advancement and Adoption of the Concept of Drug Endangered Children.