Antonia Gonzales

Photo: Marcia Lowry outside the federal courthouse in Anchorage on September 8, 2025. She was lead attorney in the class action lawsuit against the Alaska Office of Children’s Services. (Matt Faubion / Alaska Public Media) Judge Sharon Gleason dismissed a federal class-action lawsuit filed against the Alaska Office of Children’s Services (OCS) Tuesday. The lawsuit was brought by a national nonprofit working for foster care reforms. Attorneys for the organization alleged Alaska foster children are at risk of harm because of systemic problems that violated federal laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and federal child welfare protections. They pointed to high caseloads for caseworkers and an inadequate hiring and training process. About two thirds of kids in out-of-home care in the state are Alaska Native, but Gleason wrote that the attorneys did not prove that any of the foster youth represented were actually harmed. Gleason also questioned the reliability of the evidence presented. Marcia