National Indian Child Welfare Association
The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) is a nonprofit, membership organization based in Portland, Oregon. NICWA’s members include tribes, individuals—both Native and non-Native—and private organizations from around the United States concerned with Native child and family issues. NICWA is dedicated to the well-being of American Indian and Alaska Native children and families and works to support the safety, health, and spiritual strength of American Indian and Alaska Native children along the broad continuum of their lives. The organization supports tribes in building the capacity to prevent child abuse and neglect through positive systems change at the state, federal, and tribal levels. They are the most comprehensive source of information on American Indian and Alaska Native child welfare. Together, NICWA’s partners, board, and staff work to protect Native children and keep them connected to their family, community, and culture.
The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) is honored to join a group of partners preeminent in their fields, under the leadership of Generations United, to operate the National Technical Assistance Center on Grandfamilies and Kinship Families. At NICWA, we regularly talk to grandparents and other relatives who are trying to navigate the child welfare system and provide loving care for their relative children. Research shows that when children can’t remain at home, they fare best in kinship placements. Yet all too often, policy and funding streams make it challenging to work across age groups and address specific needs of different populations. The Center will play a powerful role in generating resources and providing technical assistance to states, territories, and American Indian and Alaska Native tribes to increase support for Grandfamilies and kinship families, keeping more children safely connected to their family, community, and culture.
Sarah Kastelic, PhD, MSW, citizen of the Native Village of Ouzinkie and Executive Director, NICWA