Tribe Gets Indian Child Welfare Act Grant

In September 2011, the Delaware Tribe of Indians was awarded an ICWA (Indian Child Welfare Act) grant for 2010-14 Child and Family Service Plan IV-B. In the grant application, prepared by Shirley Moore, it was stated that the grant had the following purposes:

1. To provide our tribal members and children with awareness and information to build a safe family environment;
2. To reduce family stress and improve family functioning to prevent family breakup; and
3. To develop and promote effective prevention strategies to address social problems that increase child abuse such as substance use, family violence and economic issues.

The objective of the grant is to strengthen connections among families and promote healthy well being without substance use; to prevent child abuse and neglect by training programs that address the risk factors that can lead to child abuse/neglect and foster placement; and to enhance the continuum of services for parents and children by linking families to service opportunities.

ICWA gives tribal governments a strong voice concerning child custody proceedings which involve Indian children, by allocating tribes exclusive jurisdiction when the child resides on, or is domiciled on, the reservation, or when the child is a ward of the tribe; and concurrent, but presumptive, jurisdiction over non-reservation Native Americans’ foster-care placement proceedings.