Child welfare

I. Historical Background of the Policy In 1978, our world changed for better when Congress passed The Indian Child Welfare Act. An act that was much needed and has changed the lives of American Indian children and families and continue to make a positive impact. The policy of The Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA) was created to end the unwarranted removal of American Indian children from their homes. Before November 8th, 1978 when the Act was put into action, roughly 25-35% of all American…

When controlling for individual-level characteristics and child welfare system factors, three experiences – reason for enter into foster care, type of out-of-home placement, and whether parental rights of both parents’ have been terminated – are significant predictors of increased likelihood into the moderate service and high service utilization groups. Young people whose reason for foster care placement was neglect compared to youth who did not experience neglect are 26% more likely to be in…

within the Canadian child welfare system CURRENT SITUATION: There continues to be a high over-representation of Indigenous children within the Canadian child welfare system. According to Statistics Canada, approximately 7% of the Canadian population consists of Aboriginal children. (StatCan, 2011.) However, Aboriginal children represented almost half of the population within the child welfare system at 48% (StatCan, 2011.) The population of Indigenous children within the child welfare system is…

Look at the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) of 1978, was enacted by Congress with a goal of protecting Native American children while preserving the family unit (ICWA, 1978). The ICWA was created due to the alarming rates of Native American youth being removed from their homes in comparison to other ethnicities. The Act acknowledges tribal sovereignty and serves as set of recommendations for the removal of Indian children by the child welfare system.…

Choctaw Indians: A view into the Indian Child Welfare Act According to an ancient Choctaw legend, the Choctaw Indians carried the bones of their dead for forty-three years until their creator Aba gave them their land in Southeast America, located in present day Mississippi (Akers, 2013). According to prophecy, they believed if they ever left their homeland, their nation would die. It turns out that the prophecy was true. The Choctaw Nation did die in a sense when they were forcibly removed to…

There are at least 3.6 million referrals made to child welfare agencies in the United States regarding neglect and abuse (What is Child Welfare Social Work?). Child welfare social workers are the ones who are called upon to respond to these cases of abuse. They assess children’s living conditions and work hard to find resolutions for these children. My passion involves working with marginalized children in a clinical setting. I have always felt passionate about working with children who come…

The primary objectives of the Indian Child Welfare Act were to protect American Indian children and prevent as well as end unwarranted removal of the children from their homes. The passage of the ICWA restored control and allowed the respective tribe to make decisions about child placement. Indian tribal courts also retained the right to intervene in court proceedings. Whereas Child Protective Services (CPS), Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and state would take precedence for…

The Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978: A Review of the Literature Introduction The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) of 1978, states that Congress assumes the responsibility to protect and preserve Indian tribes and their children (ICWA, 1978). The act acknowledges federally recognized tribes as having sovereignty and dictates that tribes must be involved in decisions about the welfare of Indian children who are members of their tribe. However, this social problem continues today as American…

Every system, it is set up in a way to disadvantage individuals who do not identify as a heterosexual white male or woman. In this case, I am speaking about the child welfare system and the overrepresentation of Aboriginal children. In terms of investigation of maltreatment, Aboriginal children are higher than those involving non-Aboriginal children (Hick & Stokes, 2016). The overrepresentation of Aboriginal children can be linked to the sixties scoops, colonization, and residential schools.…

Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act (AACWA) of 1980 (Pub. L. 96-272) was enacted after it was discovered that too many children were being placed in foster care too quickly and for too long during the 1970’s. The AACWA was to promote keeping the families together and placing the children in permanent placement rather than placing them in foster care. Title IV-E was created as part of the AACWA and provides federal funding for educating and training the child welfare workforce in belief…