Should a Part-Time Student Be Handling Michigan's FOC Complaint Process?

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Questions are being raised about the staffing of one of Michigan's key government accountability processes after it was reported that a Grand Valley State University student appears to be playing a central role in processing complaints filed by parents against Friend of the Court offices across the state.

Gracee G. Wisniewski, who is believed to be a part-time law clerk at the Michigan Supreme Court's State Court Administrative Office, reportedly handles the intake of administrative complaints filed with the Friend of the Court Bureau. If accurate, this would place a student employee at the front line of the only formal state-level mechanism many Michigan families have for raising concerns about how their child support, custody, and parenting time matters are handled.

The Friend of the Court Bureau, directed by Steven D. Capps, operates under the SCAO and is responsible for 75 FOC offices statewide. When a parent believes their local FOC office has mishandled their case, they can file a complaint with the bureau. The question being raised is whether a part-time student position represents adequate staffing for a process that serves as the last resort for families in 73 of Michigan's 75 counties, where no independent Citizen Advisory Committee exists to provide local oversight.

Federal regulation 45 CFR 303.20 requires adequate staffing for programs operating under Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, which governs child support enforcement. Should the complaint intake for a statewide process that affects thousands of families be managed by a part-time student clerk? That is the question some observers are now asking.

The FOC Bureau publishes annual grievance reports documenting complaint outcomes across all 75 counties. According to those reports, Kalamazoo County reportedly saw zero grievances acknowledged in full or in part from 2020 through 2024. Statewide, the reported denial rate reached 89.4 percent in 2023, raising questions about whether the complaint process is producing meaningful results for the families who use it.

State Court Administrator Tom Boyd reportedly addressed the role of the SCAO in the grievance process on April 9, 2026. Speaking through Communications Director John Nevin, Boyd is reported to have stated that the SCAO has no legal authority in answering grievances and that no review was made nor other action was taken at SCAO regarding grievances filed in specific counties. According to the statement, the SCAO compiles grievance data and provides it to the Legislature as required by statute.

If this characterization is accurate, it would suggest that no state-level entity actively oversees whether local FOC grievance processes are functioning properly, even when the state's own compiled data may indicate persistent patterns of denial.

Michigan's child support enforcement program reportedly receives approximately 300 million dollars annually in federal Title IV-D funding. Federal regulation 45 CFR 303.35 requires states to maintain functioning administrative complaint procedures. Whether the current staffing arrangement meets that standard is a question that could arise during federal compliance reviews.

It should be noted that there is no suggestion Wisniewski has acted improperly in her role. The questions being raised concern the structural adequacy of staffing for a state-level complaint process, not the conduct of any individual. If she is fulfilling the duties of a position as defined by the SCAO, the responsibility for determining appropriate staffing levels would rest with the bureau and its leadership.

The FOC Bureau's annual grievance reports are available on the Michigan Courts website. The Grand Rapids News Press will continue to monitor developments regarding Michigan's FOC complaint procedures.