Fall 2015 NICWA News

NICWANEWSQuarterly Newsletter • Fall 2015

Inside This IssueNative Children’s Policy Agenda

ICWA Defense CoalitionWisdom Circle Scholarship

And Much More

NICWA News is published by the National Indian Child Welfare Association5100 SW Macadam Avenue, Suite 300, Portland, Oregon, 97239P: (503) 222-4044 F: (503) 222-4007 www.nicwa.org

CONTENTSLetter from Executive Director 2.

Year-End Giving is Here 3.Upcoming Events 3.

Report on ICWA Consultation Released 4.Record Attendance at Training Institutes 4.

Native Chldren’s Policy Agenda 5.ICWA Defense Coalition 5.

Inside NICWA 6. NICWA Cares 7.

Kresge Gathering 8.New and Returning NICWA Members 9.

Wisdom Circle Scholarship Recipient Profile 11.

Dear NICWA Colleagues and Friends,

In October I had the opportunity to participate in the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) Annual Convention in San Diego, California.

NICWA highly values our strong partnership with NCAI, and because Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) policy and implementa-tion are such hot topics now, our board of directors and staff had more than a dozen opportunities to talk with tribal leaders and program directors. We gave NCAI’s executive committee an update on the five ICWA lawsuits in federal district courts across the country (in Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Virginia). In regional caucuses, we talked about the litigation and the Children’s Bureau’s intention to propose to finally collect federal data from states about ICWA-eligible children in their child welfare systems (for the first time ever!). We moderated a workshop for 50 participants where we were joined by staff from the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) in identifying educational tools and strategies to help tribal communities better understand and advocate for ICWA.

In the Indian Child and Family Welfare Subcommittee, NICWA President Gil Vigil chaired meetings where important resolutions defending ICWA were passed. In the plenary session, we got to speak to 2,000 participants about the ICWA litigation and the communications efforts that NICWA is leading with NCAI, NARF, and Michigan State University’s ICWA Appellate Project. With key lessons learned from Indian Country’s experience with the Baby Veronica case, we have launched a strategic offense to educate the public and policymakers about the need for and benefits of ICWA. We are training a broad range of spokespeople with a unified messaging framework to tell our stories about ICWA. We’re also developing a digital storytelling project to film key ICWA champions telling their personal stories about ICWA.

Like you, we are working hard to preserve the important protections that ICWA provides for our Native children. With our opposi-tion well-organized and well-resourced, our work is more important than ever.

Please join us. Here are several things you can do to help:1. Educate yourself and stay apprised of the latest developments. We have a special page on our website

(www.nicwa.org/government/ICWA_Regs_Resources.asp) with the latest ICWA news and resources. 2. Share ICWA stories of parents, children, Native foster families, and others with us.3. Contribute to our work and ask your tribe to contribute to our work.

We appreciate your commitment and partnership to keep our Native children safely in their homes and communities, grounded in their core and identity.

Sincerely,

Sarah Kastelic

Message from the Executive Director

National Indian Child Welfare Association | NICWA News Fall 2015 | Page 3

As we prepare for another busy year-

end giving campaign, we would like to take the time to share with you many new and exciting ways you can support our work in helping keep families together.

Several of our board members have, for years, organized events in their own community. For in-stance, NICWA Board Vice President Rochelle Ettawageshik organizes an annual holiday bazaar and house party where she shares information about the vital work we are doing to keep Native children connected and thriving in their communities. Board Member Derek Valdo organizes a workplace giving campaign, where employees make contributions to our work. If you have a flair for baking, host a bake sale! If you enjoy reading, host a read-a-thon. And don’t forget about raffles and silent auctions!

There are numerous ways to support our work. We hope you keep us in your year-end charitable giving plans this holiday season. To learn more, please visit www.nicwa.org/help for ideas and tips on how to make this holiday sea-son truly memorable and meaningful.

We can’t thank you, our supporters, enough for the vital contributions you make every day to our work. Without your support and dedication to protecting Native children and their families, our work would not be possible.

Here’s How You Can Help Keep Native Families Together

Upcoming Events

34th Annual Protecting our Children Conference

St. Paul, Minnesota

April 3–6, 2016

St. Paul, MinnesotaTraining Institutes

April 6–9, 2016• Positive Indian Parenting• ICWA Basics with Guidelines Update

Visit www.nicwa.org/news or email [email protected] for more

information or to request a training for your community.

ICWA Myths & Realities NICWA dispels some of the most commonly perpetuated myths about the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978.

Myth ♦ ICWA applies to all children who identify as Native American.

Reality ♦ False. ICWA covers any child who is a member of a federally recognized tribe/Alaska Native villlage or is eligible for membership in a federally recognized tribe/Alaska Native village and is the biological child of a member of a federally recognized tribe/Alaska Native village.


Training Institutes Break Records

In November, professionals from tribal, state, and national agencies throughout the country gathered to attend training institutes held in Anchorage, Alaska. Participants chose between courses on the

Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and Positive Indian Parenting (PIP).

NICWA’s training institutes are cost-effective professional development opportunities that allow individuals to stay abreast with the ever-chang-ing field of tribal child welfare. Participants came in groups or alone, and one thing is certain: they left feeling more ready to promote best prac-tices in tribal child welfare when they returned. Last month, attendance reached a record high, with 97 individuals coming from locations across Alaska and some from Oklahoma.

Some may attribute the high number of attendees to the ever-increasing importance of defending and protecting Indian children following recent litigation, including 2013’s Supreme Court decision. Furthermore, this past February, new ICWA guidelines were published, adding further urgency for professionals to be well-versed in ICWA implementation.

PIP training, as always, was a huge success. Designed as a train-the-trainer course, participants learned all the elements of starting a cultur-ally based parenting course tailored to the needs of their communities. Participants felt that the course was the perfect mixture of personal stories, anecdotes, and hard skills.

Attendees of the conference formed bonds with other participants and developed a sense of camaraderie. There was a spirit of “we’re all in this together” and individuals used this energy to engage in meaningful conversations around Indian child welfare and to prepare to make posi-tive changes in their communities.

Reasons and motivations for attending varied, though all attendees had one goal in common: to become better equipped with skills and knowl-edge to improve their communities back home. We have full confidence that they will.

The next series of trainings will be held in St. Paul in April. For more information, visit http://www.nicwa.org/training/institutes.

ACYF Releases Report on State Consultation with Tribes on ICWA Measures

After several years of advocacy by NICWA, the Association on American Indian Affairs, and tribes,

the Administration for Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) has released a new report that details state efforts to comply with a fed-eral law requiring states to consult with tribes on measures to comply with the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA).

The federal requirement under Title IV-B of the Social Security Act was enacted into law in 1994 and requires states to include a description of their efforts in their Child and Family Services Plan (CFSP). While the law has been in place for over two decades, tribal advocates have been critical of ACYF’s lack of oversight in the past. Many tribes have reported that state consultation efforts have not been timely or substantial enough. A 2001 NICWA study of state and federal efforts to comply with this federal requirement found state plans were approved by ACYF even when states had not materially complied with the minimum requirements of the law.

This new report comes after several years of advocacy requesting a re-examination of state compliance with the federal requirement and subsequent federal oversight. The report provides detailed information on each state’s efforts as outlined in their CFSPs and addi-tional information provided by selected tribes in their CFSPs that relates to the state plan. The data raises several questions, but does provide a baseline for tribes in their efforts to improve ICWA implementation in their state.

NICWA will be working with tribes to ask ACYF to conduct presentations for tribes on the report in 2016 and develop a plan to engage tribes on addressing challenges and supporting promising practices identified in the report. You can find a copy of the report on NICWA’s website.


National Native Organizations Release New Native Children's Policy AgendaNational Indian Child Welfare Association Pledges to Put First Kids 1st

Native children form the backbone of future tribal success and someday will lead the charge to create thriving, vibrant com-munities, which is why four national Native organizations—

the National Congress of American Indians, the National Indian Child Welfare Association, the National Indian Education Association, and the National Indian Health Board—have come together to update the joint policy agenda for Native youth.

The goal of this policy agenda is to set forth specific recommenda-tions to improve the social, emotional, mental, physical, and economic health of children and youth, allowing them to achieve their learning and developmental potential. In short, this initiative calls on key stake-holders to put “First Kids 1st.”

This agenda is intended as a tool to assist tribal leaders and other policymakers in their work to create and implement a vision for a vibrant, healthy community. It is also intended to guide stakeholders as they prioritize legislation and policy issues that may affect Native children and youth. The partners have identified four overarching themes as guiding prin-ciples for improving children's lives and outcomes. Within each theme, the agenda sets forth tribal strategies and policy objectives to implement these principles.

Native Children's Policy Agenda: Putting First Kids 1st is the updated work of the 2008 National Children's Agenda, created by the same four organizations and generously supported by W.K. Kellogg Foundation. This joint work for Native youth is part of the "First Kids 1st" initiative, which was announced last year and focuses on changing federal, state, and tribal policy to create conditions in which American Indian and Alaska Native children can thrive. To read the full agenda, visit www.nicwa.org.

Coalition Mounts Defense of ICWA NICWA, NCAI, NARF, and MSU Providing Legal and Public Relations Support in Face of Anti-ICWA Litigation

A coalition of national Native nonprofit organizations that includes NICWA has been steadfastly working together to develop and implement the strongest strategy to defend the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), and similar policies, against mounting opposition in federal courts throughout the country.

NICWA is joined by the National Congress of American Indians, Native American Rights Fund, and ICWA Appellate Project at Michigan State University School of Law in developing an ICWA defense project that provides legal support to parties named in the cases. Recognizing the need for a messaging platform and communications strategy unifying Indian Country against well-resourced think tanks and attorneys’ associations, the coalition is collaborating on a public relations strategy.

For its part, NICWA participates in regular coalition calls on all fronts, and has traveled extensively this past quarter to update our constituents on the litigation and enlist support for our combined efforts. NICWA Executive Communications Manager Nicole Adams elaborates, “The progress we have made together to strengthen ICWA’s protections will continue to be met with well-organized and well-financed challenges in the courts. As such, our coaliton is prepared for the mara-thon and not the sprint when it comes to defending the laws that protect our children. Thankfully, the unwavering support of each community and organization we’ve reached out to for support has both humbled us and steeled our resolve to continue our important work. These are our children that we endeavor to protect. We are fully committed.”


NICWA Welcomes New Staff!

This has been a busy season internally at NICWA, as we have welcomed four new staff recently.

Sarah Hopper was born and raised in Portland, Oregon, and received a bachelor of arts in international studies at Portland State University (PSU) in 2013. Her interest in diplomacy and intercultural competence led her to pursue a master’s degree in conflict resolution at PSU, which she expects to complete in 2016. Before joining NICWA

as operations coordinator in July 2015, Sarah interned with a private mediation practice and with NICWA in hu-man resources.

Sarah Wittmann joined the NICWA team in September 2015 as the event coordinator. She graduated from Messiah College in 2008 with a bachelor of social work. Following grad-uation, she worked closely with international students as the intercultural programs coordi-nator at a liberal arts university in Lithuania. Afterwards, she moved to Montana to attend the University of Montana, where she studied intercultural youth and family development as part of the Masters International Program. In conjunc-tion with this, she served in the Peace Corps as a youth development specialist in Azerbaijan. In her two years of service, she focused on grassroots community develop-ment with young girls, women, and people with disabilities. Sarah is looking forward to putting all her cross-cultural studies, experience, and passions into practice in her new role at NICWA.

Brenda Hernandez comes to NICWA with an expertise in donor mapping, research, and prospecting. She is a grad-uate of California State University, San Bernardino, where she earned a bachelor of arts degree in anthropology in 2013, becoming the first person in her immediate family to

graduate from university. Fol-lowing graduation, she worked as a prospect research associ-ate for a nonprofit management company based in Claremont, California, working with various nonprofits in and around the Greater Los Angeles area. She has provided research that led

Inside NICWAto a successful $1 million fundraising campaign, staffed several fundraising events, and has experience preparing grant applications and letters of interest. Born and raised in Southern California, Brenda is looking forward to the beautiful Oregon weather and is ready to use her exper-tise and experience in her role as development associate.

We are extremely lucky to have Tristan Tipps-Webster join our team in November as our new member relations manager. She comes to us with many years of experience in member-based work with organizations in Australia dedicated to Aboriginal human rights. Originally from Southern California, Tristan has dedicated her career to working in communities, advocacy, and organizational development.

NICWA Board Adds Nelson, Baldwin, Church

One familiar face and two new youth have

joined the NICWA Board of Directors. Longtime Board Member Theodore Nelson, Sr. (Seminole Tribe of Florida), has returned after a short leave of absence. He was first elected to NICWA’s board in 2006. In keeping with NICWA’s commitment to incorporate the youth voice into the or-ganization’s governance system, two Native youth were recently elected to the NICWA board. Teressa Baldwin (Inupiaq) and Cassondra Church (Pokagon Band of Potawatomi), were elected during the National Congress of American Indians Youth Commission gathering in San Diego in October. They will serve three-year terms on the NICWA board.

NICWA is Hiring!Join Team NICWA! We are accepting applica-tions for an ICWA Specialist and Community Development Specialists.

Visit www.nicwa.org/careers to find out how to apply!


Baby Boom Hits NICWA...and we love it!

We have experi-enced a full blown baby boom here at

NICWA. Over the last year we had the good fortune of wel-coming three new additions to the NICWA family!

In January, Matthew Scott welcomed his first daughter, Genevieve, into the world.

He hasn’t gotten much sleep since, but Matt and his lovely wife, Maggie, are quickly adjusting to the realities of being parents. Then in June, Ashley Kay Harding celebrated the birth of her first daughter when she and her family welcomed Kezbah into their lives. Ashley’s two sons are so excited to have a little sister to play with. Most recently in October, Jalynne Geddes had her first son Desmond. Jalynne and her husband, Dustin, are at home spending quality time with their son.

It is truly a blessing each time we get to welcome a healthy child into our little community at NICWA. We are excited to see the the impact they will have on the world. An added bonus is that each addition to the NICWA family means we get new baby pictures to share and we get the best reason to celebrate!

There has been a flurry of local events in the Portland area where NICWA staff proudly volunteered. Over the summer, we renewed our commitment to promoting Native cul-ture by sponsoring the tiny tots special at the Delta Park Powwow and Encampment.

NICWA Executive Director Sarah Kastelic was there to help pass out gifts, remembering, “There are few things more rewarding than seeing the looks on children’s faces when you give them a well-earned gift for all their dancing.” NICWA also sponsored tiny tots at Port-land’s Dancing in the Square Powwow in September. NICWA has been a longtime sponsor of this event, organized by the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board.

This October, hundreds of Native youth and education advocates from across the country convened for the National Indian Education Association’s annual convention in Portland, Oregon. NICWA staffers met with Native youth and shared information with them about myriad social work opportuni-ties and how to make positive change in their community. Executive Communications Manager Nicole Adams relished the opportunity to engage with “so many bright, passionate youth who are ready and eager to change the world.”

Just before Halloween, we made an appearance at the Native American Rehabilitation Association’s Boo Bash. Giv-ing staff a legitimate reason to dress up makes this event a favorite. To top it off, Monica Hawley’s grandson, Phoenix, won the best costume award for a newborn! Last but not least, in November, Valorie Gaede and Tia Begay made the short journey across the Columbia River to tell people about the work we are doing in Washington State at Clark College’s Indigenous Cultures Celebration and Powwow. For us, part of our mission is to invest our time and energies deepening our relationship with the local community.

NICWA CaresStaff Show Spirit of Volunteerism

Every year, NICWA provides onsite training and technical assistance to dozens of communities in the U.S. and Canada. Here is where we’ve been in 2015.

Where We’ve Been


Succession Planning Learning Community Convening a Success

In 2014, NICWA began working with and facilitating a learning com-munity made up of 10 partner organizations focused on succession planning in culturally based human service nonprofit organizations.

With our partners—Black Administrators in Child Welfare; the Child Welfare League of America; the Committee for Hispanic Children and Families; the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement; the Denver Indian Family Resource Center; the First Alaskans Institute; the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization (IRCO); Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics, Inc.; the New York Council on Adoptable Children; and A Second Chance, Inc.—NICWA has been exploring the unique issues and challenges that accompany executive transitions in culturally based organizations over the past year, and this work will continue for the next two years.

Late August 2015 saw the learning community convene in Vancouver, Washington, to build relationships, provide con-sultation and technical assistance to one another, share resources, provide updates on the progress of internal projects related to succession planning, and provide each other with peer support. Each of the partner organizations brought a small group of organizational leaders, including new executives, outgoing or retiring executives, board members, and se-nior staff, and the learning community was joined by Christine Robinson, senior program officer at the Kresge Foundation, which is funding this work.

Together, learning community members set a vision for our work together and discussed what it means to be a culturally based organization. Organizational teams participated in a “river of succession” exercise to explore their experiences of executive transitions and successions by using the metaphor of a river’s journey to draw and present their organization-al histories. Detailed notes from these presentations are forming the foundation of a series of case studies, which the

learning community will publish at a later date. Claudia Burnett, board treasurer for IRCO, said that her organiza-tion would “keep [their] river journey with lasting joy and guidance for the future.”

In addition, the learning community discussed the emer-gence of collective wisdom, the strengths and resources each partner organization brought to the table, opportu-nities for leadership and healing in the face of organiza-tional

trauma, and the use of organizational effectiveness tools. In smaller groups, learning community members delved into donor and funder engagement during executive transitions, workplace climate and orga-nizational culture, nonprofit financing strategies, branding a transition and engaging constituents, managing staff emotions and anxiety around executive transitions, engaging boards of directors in the work of leader-ship transitions, and strategies to support new leaders.

The August 2015 convening was an important opportunity for the suc-cession planning learning community to strengthen relationships and set its course for the future. Dennis Swain, executive director of the Denver Indian Family Resource Center, gave “kudos to the Kresge Foundation and NICWA for gathering leaders from different cultures to truly share experiences about struggles and successes.” Dennis went on to say that the convening provided him with “an amazing opportunity to learn from other culturally specific agencies on their different approaches and how they embedded their values into their practice.” We at NICWA are excited to continue this work with our partners, and look forward to continuing to share the results of this collaboration.

The August 2015 convening was an important opportunity

for the succession planning learning community to strengthen relationships and set its course for the future.


New and Renewing MembersApril 11–November 30, 2015

TribeCook Inlet Tribal CouncilCoushatta Tribe of LouisianaMuscogee (Creek) NationOsage Nation Social ServicesSeminole Tribe of FloridaSycuan Band of the Kumeyaay NationTuolumne Band of Me-Wuk IndiansTwenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians

OrganizationCARE Schools

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

IndividualAdam BaileyHelene BusterHeather CapistrantTerry CrossFrancine Eddy JonesSharon FlemingRovianne LeighRebekah MainJill MayLeola McKenzieMelissa ParsonsMonica Roth DayKarla SaucedoTamera C. ShankerDavid SimmonsElizabeth Steinke

Coral Membership Tier

TribeApache Tribe of Oklahoma ICW Prevention ProgramCedarville RancheriaCitizen Potawatomi Nation, Indian Child WelfareDelaware Tribe of IndiansJamestown S’Klallam TribeMakah NationMashpee Wampanoag TribeOsage Nation - Office of the ChiefsPala Band of Mission IndiansPokagon Band of Potawatomi IndiansPonca Tribe of NebraskaQuapaw Tribe of OklahomaQuinault Indian NationSac and Fox NationSan Carlos Apache TribeSmith River RancheriaSusanville Indian RancheriaUte Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray ReservationWampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) of Massachusetts

OrganizationAmerican Indian Health & Family ServicesAMERIND Risk Management Corporation

Carlton County Public Health & Human ServicesDenver Indian Family Resource Center, Inc.

Eight Northern Indian Pueblos CouncilHobbs, Straus Dean & Walker, LLP

Humboldt State University, Department of Social Work

Nevada Division of Child and Family ServicesNew York Council on Adoptable Children

Spirit Rock ConsultingStandard Insurance

State of Alaska Office of Children’s ServicesUniversity of Oklahoma National Resource

Center for Youth Services

IndividualBeverly AndersonLaura L. BentleRobyn Black FeatherCarole ButzkeSybil P. CarofThomas L. CrofootPaul W. DayMonica DennyLael Echo-HawkMelissa Garcia-MartinezLark GoodTracksLloyd GuyMonica HawleyTrina HofbauerWesley MartinMary McCarthyRobert McGheeAnn McKay BrysonSandra MithloJerene MusethChrissi NimmoJeanette NinhamD’Anna OsceolaDale PowlessAhniwake RoseYonevea SapcutCarol L. SilvaLois StrongDerek ValdoGil Vigil

Turquoise Membership Tier


Brenda AbramsMarcella AdolphShannon AhtoneJody AlholinnaHarvey AllenJessie M. ArchibaldCarol ArmstrongChristine AtineNikki BakerCathy BarriosDorothy BartonMartha BeardTileah (Tia) BegayHana Doe BernadettDialina R. BlackhatMarlena BlakeHailee BobAlice J. BogertMisty J. BrammerTerra BransonKarla BraskettLuane BrownKurt BuffaloKatharine CahnDenise CarpenterPatricia Carter-GoodheartEvelyn CassPhoebe CellittiJim ChaliakCathy ChalmersLora E. ChandlerAaron ChoneskaAlex CochraneSue-I-Chet ColegroveShyla CollicottAngela ConnorDavid ContoisRita CoosewoonHaley CreeH. Paul CueroMartha L. CuttLeah DavisRaymond DawVerlin DeerinwaterBernice DelormeRobin DenneyTwyla Dolan

Jennifer ElliottLeanne EllisChrishy EspinozaRochelle EttawageshikChristina EvansCarmen FarmerJames V. FenelonRandeen FitzpatrickDonne FleagleRachel ForeJocelyn FormsmaKathryn FortAdriel FoxleyLois FriedlanderCourtney GarzaCarlene GonzalezCarol Gooday-MithloRoxanne GourneauJosephine HalfhideDana HannaWendy HarrisJennifer Hawthorn MayesLynn HazenNatalia HeightLutie HillairePenny HillaireCindy HoaglenHelen HookJeanine HooperLaurel HoskinsMaggi HutchasonJulia JaakolaReanna E. JacobsMary Elizabeth JagerAnita JamesKaren JarobeJames JewettJimmy D. JohnHolly JohnsonLionel G. JohnsonNora JohnsonPeggy JourdainMargaret KendrickNatalie KeshaneSarah A. KimmonsIsar KingAdele Kinley

Rebecca KinleyClint KittrellErin LeeStevie LemkeLucille LincolnLinda LoganJoellyn MagooshJaclyn A. MahoneyCandi MarcantelKandis MartineKendra MartinezLita MartinezPaul MatteVirginia MattePatricia MaxwellLindsay R. McCoveyRobin McGinnisSpring MedaccoWilliam A. MetcalfeDeborah MichaelNicole MillerPaul MinehartKristine MitchellAmalia MonrealKathleen MorrisonDaniel MorrisseauJudy MorrisseauKristina MuellerEdith L. NelsonLisa NicolaiSunshine NicholsonJeremy NilsenBrandon NorrisTasha NortonKenna OkaneeJodi Michele OwingsBrittany ParkerDelia ParrKathy S. PaulCandace PayerSharon PenaRandee PorterJonathan PowellMichelle RainerDelfino ReanoLynn J. ReerJan Reeves

New and Renewing MembersApril 11–November 20, 2015

Abalone Membership TierJohn RichMichelle M. RobertsonLaurie RosePhillip RowlandValerie RuckerNeda SalemArlene SamsonRyan SanchezJames SandersJimel SandovalDonalyn SarracinoMaria ScannapiecoTina J. SchubertAnalisa K. SeldenAnita ShadRae ShingooseAndrew SmallPete Small BearChristina SniderRoger SpencerMichael SticklerLaurie Sun ChildKimberly SweetBrenda SwettChristie TabisolaWyanet TaskerMary F. TenorioCindy TortesMolly TovarJessica S. UllrichRochelle VetterBuffy ViaCarla VictoroffDorothy WaitLisa Wall-WilbertEmma WassillieMary WebsterAlex WesawCraig WhiteSamantha WhiteMatilda WilsonTodd WilsonLouann WindegoCarleigh WreggittJulie Yupe

Vertis BelcherAssociate Membership Tier

John George Manuelita Ortiz


Editor’s Note: This year marked the first time that NICWA has award-ed its Wisdom Circle Scholarship. NICWA awards as many as four an-nual merit-based scholarships of up to $125 each to members who work in, or with, the Indian child welfare (ICW) field, and who demonstrate significant motivation in advancing their education or professional skills in the field. Scholarships are for ICW-related courses, trainings, work-shops, or classes. In selecting Jimmy John for this award, NICWA was pleased to support his participation at the International Foster Care Organisation’s Conference in Sydney, Austrailia. Below, John shares his reflections on the how attending the conference would resonate with his professional and personal goals. Congratulations!

When I was asked as a young child what I wanted to be, my original ambition was to become a pediatrician. As I grew older, those ambitions changed to reflect the type of upbringing I

experienced as a foster child. I’m a second generation foster alumni—my mother was also in foster care when I was born. My goal now is to become a nationally recognized advocate, presenter, and speaker for youth in foster care, those transi-tioning out of care, and the several hundreds of thousands of foster alumni. I realize that being an advocate is what brings me the greatest joy, especially since I am so passionate and devoted to what foster care is, and ways in which it can be reformed.

So, that is my quest, to become the best spokesman for foster youth at the local, state, national, and international levels. I want to promote continued positive changes that come from someone who knows what it is like to walk in the shoes of a foster child, who supports them without judgement or reservation. When asked what my longterm goals are and how to achieve them, the best answer I can provide is one step at a time. I know I will need, and gladly accept, guidance in how to achieve the most impactful outcomes and encourage the constructive criticism that comes with it.

At the Annual Alumni Powerhouse Networking Conference, I learned about the International Foster Care Organisation’s (IFCO) Conference in Sydney, Australia. One of IFCO’s key activities is to provide foster care stakeholders a unique opportunity to share information and learn about global fostering best practices and advancements. IFCO has established a worldwide network with active networks in Asia, East Europe, and South America. I will be using NICWA’s Wisdom Circle Scholarship to help with my registration fees for the IFCO confer-ence. What better organization to be involved with to discuss the complex issue of cultural influence on the foster care system? The title of this year’s conference is “Tell Someone Who Cares,” which could not be more fitting considering the many issues facing the foster care system internationally.

After attending this conference and others, I would like to establish workshops to focus on more cultural involvement for foster youth throughout Oklahoma and beyond. I wish to address leaders of child welfare at state and tribal levels and bring back the importance of heritage and culture. I will be seeking a degree in communications so I can become effec-tive in communicating as a change agent and advocate, for our youth in out-of-home placements. I wish to learn ways to improve the lives of my tribal siblings, foster siblings, and strengthen the support for our foster parents so that we can get away from congregate care facilities. I’d like to have a hand in decreasing the negative stigma associated with the term “foster child” and encourage the term “youth with promise” versus “at-risk youth”.

Member SpotlightJohn Awarded Inaugural Wisdom Circle Scholarship

I realize that being an advocate is what brings me the greatest joy. —NICWA Member Jimmy John

,, ,,

Scholarships are for ICW-related courses,

trainings, workshops, or classes. More information can be found on our website.

NICWA News

National Indian Child Welfare Association5100 SW Macadam Avenue, Suite 300, Portland, Oregon, 97239

PHONE: (503) 222-4044 FAX: (503) 222-4007 WEB: www.nicwa.org

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Fall 2015 NICWA News

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