For five days during the week of August 23, 2010, the Western and Pacific Child Welfare Implementation Center (WPIC) staff and consultants traveled across the five regions of the Navajo Nation to talk to the community and children’s service providers about efforts underway better support Navajo Nation families and vulnerable children and youth. Over a year ago, the Navajo Department of Social Services (NDSS) was selected to receive technical assistance from WPIC to improve children’s services and these community meetings provided an opportunity to share the plan for moving forward and get insights from the community. The judicial system has been a strong partner and supporter of the project. At an open forum on August 23rd Chief Justice Herb Yazzie stated “There is no greater leadership responsibility than to protect the young. If we don’t do anything in 2010, when are we going to do it?”

The project supports the work done by NDSS to ensure that Navajo children who enter the child welfare system can be assured of safe, permanent and lifelong connections in the Navajo Nation. The recent changes to the Children’s Code will allow for concurrent planning of child welfare cases which will increase the pace of decision making about the child’s future – whether they reunify with their family or find a home with another Navajo Nation family. WPIC will support NDSS in implementing the recent changes to the Children’s Code by training staff in the new policies and practices, as well as embracing the traditional teachings and values of the Navajo Way. WPIC will also support efforts to improve collaboration and coordination with other Navajo Nation child-serving divisions, law enforcement, and judicial departments.

The project will also focus on enhancing the quality of services and WPIC will develop tools to assist staff in collecting child welfare data to track length of time for decision-making about placements for children and youth in the child welfare system. The data will inform supervisors and administrators about whether their efforts were successful in fostering permanent connections for Navajo Nation youth. The project is designed to last four years to ensure that new practices are in place and implemented consistently across the Navajo Nation.

At the meetings, Thomas Cody, Legislative Analyst for the NDSS and Melissa Clyde, a National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) consultant for WPIC, gave a detailed overview of the project. They were joined by Marketa Garner Gautreau, project director for WPIC. The meetings were held at chapter houses and in community forums in Crown Point, Ft. Defiance, Tuba City, Chinle and Many Farms, and were open forums, with question and answer sessions. Participants shared their vision for the children and youth in the Navajo Nation, including their desire for children to be safe from violence, the importance of family and traditional values, and the critical need for better coordination, collaboration, and clear commitment for children across all the government agencies.