Kaw Nation Tribal Youth Program (OJJDP)

The Justice Department's grant-making components have created a streamlined approach for federally recognized Tribes, Tribal consortia, Alaska Native villages and corporations, as well as authorized tribal designees to apply for Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 funding opportunities. The Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS) serves as a single solicitation for existing tribal government-specific grant programs administered by the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW). The CTAS solicitation is designed to assist tribes with addressing crime and public safety issues in a comprehensive manner. The CTAS grant-application process was inspired by and developed after consultation with tribal leaders, including sessions at the Justice Department's Tribal Nations Listening Session in 2009, and has been updated based on continued tribal consultations and listening sessions. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provides awards under CTAS Purpose Area 9--Tribal Youth Program (TYP) to federally recognized tribes to develop and implement programs that support and enhance Tribal efforts to prevent and control juvenile delinquency and strengthen juvenile justice system for American Indian/Alaska Native youth.

Kaw Nation is requesting funding to create and implement a culturally appropriate Tribal Youth Program that focuses on native youth at risk for dropout and teen pregnancy. The tribe encounters a great deal of troubled youth within their area and jurisdiction, but they are unable to help due to the lack of programing for youth that is based on mentoring good choices, pregnancy prevention and staying in school. The Tribe has identified the need to provide better prevention and intervention services to native youth and has a recognized need to focus on native girls due to teen pregnancy being the number one reason that native youth in their area are dropping out of school. Through this funding the Kaw Nation wishes to teach native girls culturally appropriate skills needed to resist substance abuse, prevent teen pregnancy, prevent sexual abuse, foster positive relationships with peers and adults, learn self-advocacy, and build pro-social skills and most importantly - stay in school. Due to the rural service area of Kaw Nation, native girls are at a higher risk of drop-out, pregnancy and substance abuse. Kaw Nation will create a mentoring program that will address these needs and enable young native women to engage in life skills education that will help them to break the trends that put them at risk. Youth will have opportunities within the program to invite family members to activities that will include beading, moccasin making, and cooking native foods, allowing them to share experiences and cultural knowledge, and as a result of this - bonding with family members - which help build positive relationships. Girls will learn culturally appropriate skills in a mentor setting where family members are welcome creating an atmosphere of family interaction and belonging. Kaw Nation believes that when youth have the support of their family and are taught to make positive choices while having an understanding of the consequences of adverse behavior then they are more likely to make quality choices that will have a long term impact on their outcome.

CA/NCF