Standing Strong for Native Families
A website from the Native American Rights Fund
Projects that are organized to address Indian child welfare issues.
But a week ago, citing a “crisis” in child welfare, Brown called for creation of the advisory board and other steps to give her more direct control of the agency with an aim of getting it to improve and to do so quickly. She issued an executive order to put her wishes into effect. The … Read more
The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, First Nations Repatriation Institute, and the University of Minnesota are pleased to announce the launch of our study: Child Removal in Native Communities. This is an anonymous survey about American Indian and Alaskan Native experiences and impacts of child removal to #BreakTheSilence and #BeginTheHealing. … If you are … Read more
The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) has selected the Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska Child Dependency Court as one of six new courts to join their Implementation Sites Project, which helps to improve outcomes for abused and neglected children and their families. Read the full article at … Read more
Two years ago, Tarnowski attended a training in Duluth given by the National Child Welfare Resource Center on Legal and Judicial Issues. Stories of historical trauma that have helped lead to that disparity, and also what led to the creation of the Indian Child Welfare Act, were shared, Tarnowski said, creating “a little fire in … Read more
With the number of American Indian children in Minnesota foster care reaching “unacceptable” levels, the state pledged Thursday to spend $400,000 over the next three years to reduce those numbers. The announcement comes after a Star Tribune report found that Minnesota has more Indian children in foster care than any other state, including those with … Read more
The Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS) final rule was published in the Federal Register on June 2, 2016. The CCWIS final rule replaces the Statewide/Tribal Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS/TACWIS) requirements to address changes in child welfare practice and advances in information technology that have occurred since the regulations were published in 1993. … Read more
UMD’s Center for Regional and Tribal Child Welfare Studies, which is part of the Department of Social Work, will serve as the grant’s lead organization and will work with six other organizations including courts, child welfare agencies, and tribes, to determine the most successful methods to help children and families. Read the full announcement at … Read more
from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ana/news/report-states-consultation-and-collaboration-with-tribes: The Children’s Bureau conducted a review of the states’ 2015–2019 Child and Family Services Plans (CFSP) and prepared a report titled “States’ Consultation and Collaboration with Tribes and Reported Compliance with the Indian Child Welfare Act: Information from States’ and Tribes’ 2015–2019 Child and Family Services Plans.” This report was prepared in response … Read more
The Native Nations Institute at the University of Arizona and the National Indian Child Welfare Association have released a report detailing the second part of a study on tribal welfare codes designed to protect children and youth…. Based on the study’s findings, the team affirms that: · To help protect children from abuse and neglect, … Read more
The National Indian Child Welfare Association, Native American Rights Fund, National Congress of American Indians and the ICWA Appellate Clinic at Michigan State University College of Law have published a memo covering: Synopsis of recent attacks on the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) How can tribes and allies work together to help defend ICWA See … Read more
“The Condition of Education for Members of Oregon’s Indian Tribes” was a study completed by ECONorthwest and the Chalkboard Project. The Spirit Mountain Community Fund paid for the study, which looked at students enrolled in seven of Oregon’s federally recognized tribes, including the Klamath Tribes. Read more about the report at the Herald and News … Read more
Pledging to fulfill a “sacred responsibility,” President Barack Obama unveiled an initiative Wednesday aimed at improving dire conditions and creating opportunities for American Indian youth, more than a third of whom live in poverty. Read the full article at the Huffington Post website. Read the president’s remarks, a related fact sheet and the 2014 Native … Read more
Toward that end, the LTBB Head Start Center employs a language teacher to teach children and staff their Native language of Anishinaabemowin. Sometimes the kids are so excited that they go home and teach their parents, a practice that has resulted in the center receiving calls from parents inquiring about the meaning of common words. … Read more
The Michigan Tribal State Federal Judicial Forum, which was created this year and held its first meeting in Petoskey this week, provides an ongoing venue for all three jurisdictions to convene and improve working relations and communications. A priority for the Forum is addressing child welfare issues, and ensuring that our courts systems are meeting … Read more
When completed, the 26,000-square-foot Ardmore Early Childhood Development Center will provide educational opportunities for more than 200 Chickasaw children and non-Native children, from 6 weeks to 4 years old, in the Ardmore area. Read more about this project at the Indian Country Today Media Network website.
Laguna Pueblo’s community programs, ranging from early childhood programs to assistance to military veterans, are now under the umbrella of the newly created Laguna Community Foundation, a nonprofit that will oversee their funding and provide needed guidance. “We decided to bring all of our programs under one entity rather than have them split up,” said … Read more
The state of South Dakota has forcibly removed our Lakota children from their tribes for 150 years. The Indian Child Welfare Act continues to be violated daily. Lakota leaders agree on the best permanent solution to this crisis: a Lakota-run foster care and family service system. I am writing here today to urgently request that … Read more
At 45.5 percent, Minnesota has the lowest on-time high-school graduation rate for its Native American students of any state in the country. Though acknowledging that hard truth, a new report by the Minnesota Campaign for Achievement Now (MinnCAN) reflects hope. Read more at the Twin Cities Daily Planet website. Related stories: All Nations program at … Read more
According to a press release from the Department of Justice: The Department of Justice honored the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation’s Tribal Victim Services program for creating a healing arts program for sexual assault victims. Attorney General Eric Holder presented the program with an award during the National Crime Victims’ Rights Week awards ceremony on Wednesday, … Read more
Tribal STAR (Successful Transitions for Adult Readiness) is a program of the San Diego State University School of Social Work, Academy for Professional Excellence. It’s mission is to ensure Tribal foster youth are connected to culture, community and resources. The program does this by providing training and technical assistance to tribes, tribal programs, county social … Read more
A collaboration between the National Indian Child Welfare Assocation the Western and Pacific Implementation Center (WPIC), and the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska and other tribes, this project addresses the systemic issues that exist in tribal child welfare between the State of Alaska and Alaska Native Tribes. The four year … Read more