Choctaw Nation Healing to Wellness

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) 2017 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 8--Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts. The overall purpose of this grant program is to support tribes seeking to develop a new Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court to respond to the alcohol and substance use issues of juveniles and young adults under the age of 21.

The goal of the project is to plan and launch a Choctaw Nation Healing to Wellness Diversion Program to divert Choctaw Juveniles from Oklahoma and Choctaw justice systems into a healing program that engages individualized, culturally-compatible treatment services. The effort will be led by the Choctaw Nation Reintegration Department and will involve a substantial two-year planning effort to design and establish the program. Next, the Reintegration Department will pilot the program in Bryan County and expand to Choctaw and McCurtain counties in Year Four. Planning efforts will prioritize a community support and buy-in to ensure that collective needs are identified and addressed. A Healing to Wellness Committee of multidisciplinary stakeholders will be established and utilized throughout the four-year program to help guide planning and implementation activities. Policies and procedures will be solidified to ensure diversions function smoothly. Once implemented, the program will serve 30 eligible juveniles referred by Oklahoma or Choctaw justice systems each year. Each participant will be given a full assessment, provided a tailored treatment plan, and connected to treatment providers at the Choctaw Nation or through a secondary referral.

CA/NCF