Welcome to the spring issue of NICWA News. This issue embraces the theme of celebrating those who serve Native families. Everyone from the formal child welfare program and huge array of family support services, to those community and culturally based supports focused on prevention and family well-being, to relatives and neighbors who check in when they see a family struggling to offer help or support serve Native families. According to our traditional beliefs and values, raising and nurturing children is a collective responsibility. We think of it as an “all hands on deck” enterprise. Especially given the challenging circumstances families face today, parents and children could use support in lots of different contexts, and there are lots of opportunities for each of us—no matter our formal role or relationships—to offer support.

On May 11, 2022, the U.S. Department of the Interior released the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative Investigative Report.

Read the latest edition of our quarterly newsletter, NICWA News. To read the Winter issue alongside past publications on Issuu, click the bottom hand corner icon to read in full screen.

2022 Policy Priorities Each year the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) identifies policy priorities that will guide our efforts and focus our resources during the calendar year. These annual priorities are developed through input from our board, staff,...

Over the past year, NICWA provided a forum for tribes and Indian Country advocates through national and regional listening sessions focused on redesigning child welfare services in the United States. These sessions inform our work regarding what policies, tools, and resources are needed, and they steer our advocacy to ensure that broader, national child welfare redesign efforts are inclusive of American Indian and Alaska Native perspectives and solutions.