Newsletter., January 17, 1980, Image 1

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UNIVfR&lTY OP
OREGON LIBRARY
SILETZ TRIBE APPLIES FOR
GRANT
MAY n 2 i 3^980 ld WELFARE
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Did you know that in the Siletz Tribe’s 8 County Service Area, the placement rate of
Indian children in foster hemes, is over 300% greater than the state wide average of
p £ foster placements for non Indian children? Until recently, Tribal staff did not know
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that. We still do not know how many of those Indian children are Siletz.
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? - 71 The Indian Child Welfare Act (Public Law 95-608) states that, in court hearings that
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involve custody of an Indian child, tribal courts can assume jurisdiction and if the
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00 hearing remains in the state court system, the child’s tribe can intervene at any
time during the process of that hearing. The Act requires that the court notify an
Indian child’s tribe of'any pending custody hearings regarding that child. If the
hearing results in the child being adopted, preference in placement of the child shall
be given to:
1.
. 2.
3.
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A member of the child’s extended family;
Other members of the child's tribe;
Other Indian families
If the hearing results in the child being placed in foster care, the Act says that
preference will be given to:
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1. A member of the child’s extended family;
2. A foster care licensed, approved, or specified by the child's tribe;
3. An Indian foster heme licensed or approved by a non Indian licensing
authority;
4. An institution for children approved by the tribe, or operated by an
Indian organization
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At their January 15, 1980 meeting, the Siletz Tribal Council authorized staff to
submit a grant proposal to the BIA. That grant would fund the fallowing program:
1. Research all legal aspects of the Indian Child Welfare Act as it relates
to the Confederated Tribes of Siletz, and develop child welfare policies
and a child welfare code for the Tribe's use; '
2. Design and implement a legal representation program for use of the tribal
government and tribal members;
3. Develop a tribal foster-care heme program;
4. Design and implement an education/training program for tribal staff and tribal
members regarding legal rights of the Siletz children, Siletz tribal members,
and the Siletz Tribe under the Indian Child Welfare Act
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If approved, the grant would provide funds to retain the Siletz tribal attorney for
necessary legal research developing a legal referral system, and if necessary,
representing the Tribe or tribal members in custody hearings which involve Siletz
children. The grant also would fund a half time child welfare specialist to re­
search processes used by state and county agencies involved in foster care placement
and adoptions,& the criteria those agencies use for certifying foster care hemes.
The Child Welfare Specialist would provide information on certification standards
to Siletz families interested in providing foster care homes for Siletz children.
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We will know whether or not our grant has been approved by March 1980, and will
let you know in future newsletters what progress is being made in establishing our
program and meeting project goals.
Tribal member Vivian M i n t h o m ' s husband is in the U of 0 Medical School Hospital.
He may have visitors, so any tribal member wishing to visit, his room is South 8C,
room number 53.
"We're all thinking about you, Bill!"