Texas Public Radio Claims First Collier Spotlight Quarterly Certificate Award

The first Collier Spotlight award, a new quarterly certificate recognizing groundbreaking reporting on state government institutions, is awarded to Texas Public Radio and reporter Paul Flahive for its multimedia investigation into the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.

The project, “When Home Is A Danger,” revealed that more than 1,200 children died in Texas from 2018 to 2023 from maltreatment, and more than half of the deaths were blamed on abuse and neglect that occurred in families that had come under state scrutiny. One out of five deaths occurred in families that had already been investigated at least three times for abuse and neglect. Nearly 100 of those families had been investigated six or more times.

The reporting found that one in four deaths occurred in families that had been investigated within a year prior and more than 200 happened within six months of an investigation.

“This project stands out because Texas has failed its children,” said one of the Collier Spotlight jurors of the series, produced through the Pulitzer Center’s StoryReach U.S. Fellowship. “The reporting is comprehensive, anchored by strong data analysis, and long overdue. Texas has been under federal oversight for years for failing to protect children, and this investigation lays bare the ongoing consequences.”

The Collier Spotlight is part of the Collier Prize for State Government Accountability, an initiative of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. It awards a $500 honorarium to each quarterly winner and was introduced in 2025 to expand the impact of the Collier Prize initiative.

Category: Alumni News, College News
Tagged: Collier Prize for State Government Accountability Collier Spotlight Rick Hirsch
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