Knox County Job & Family Services director: staffing vacancies, benefits counts and $150 school vouchers

Scott Boone, director of Knox County Job & Family Services, told the Board of Commissioners on April 30 that public assistance currently has five eligibility/referral specialist vacancies and a vacant supervisor role, and said the department plans to give notice to exit a regional collaborative call center in October in order to focus on Knox County–only service delivery. "We're prepared to move forward with that in October," Boone told commissioners.

Boone provided benefits statistics for the county: 2,235 households (4,321 individuals) were receiving SNAP as of early April, including 2,676 adults and 1,645 children. He said February TANF (temporary assistance for needy families) cash assistance distributed $49,610, down from $56,585 in February 2025, and reported February Medicaid expenditures at about $14,200,000. Boone said the county recently received favorable observations in a state audit of SNAP integrity and will forward the audit results to commissioners.

On programs, Boone outlined the back‑to‑school voucher schedule: applications open June 10, voucher pickup is July 29, and voucher amounts remain $150. Redemption vendors listed in the meeting record include Beals, Gabe's, Shoe Sensation and Marshalls; negotiations with Walmart were still ongoing. Boone said vouchers could be picked up at the Job & Family Services office or at an event at the First Church of the Nazarene.

Boone also discussed child‑placement costs, describing annual placement expenditures of about $2.4 million and noting state‑level conversations about how to control placement rates and private network costs. He closed by promoting a career and apprenticeship fair on May 5 at the Opportunity Knox Building (17604 Kesakton Avenue) with 44 registered employers and programs targeting ages 15–21.