CPN Indian Child Welfare Department caseworker Whitney Coots helps children of neglect and abuse improve their situation every day.
Citizen Potawatomi Nation tribal member Omar Rana crafted an educational presentation on the Indian Child Welfare Act in fall 2020 that eventually became an official continuing education program for his fellow colleagues at the Legal Aid Society of New York City.
When the phone rings in the middle of the night and a Citizen Potawatomi child faces court proceedings potentially placing them in foster care, people like Janet Draper take the call. As the director of the Tribal Indian Child Welfare Program, she and her staff play a vital role in the lives of young Tribal Read More »
Citizen Potawatomi Nation’s wellness court welcomes many who choose sobriety, accountability — and a 9 p.m. curfew — over jail time. The 15-month Healing to Wellness Court is open to CPN tribal members, their children and Natives and non-Natives over age 18 who have a history of substance abuse and are charged with a Read More »
The Citizen Potawatomi Indian Child Welfare Department has one of the toughest challenges in Indian Country, providing services and interventions on behalf of some of the Tribe’s most in-need citizens. The department’s trials are outmatched by the determination of the staff, a core group of individuals who deal with families and Tribal citizens on some of their worst days. Heading up the Family Preservation Program is Desiree Read More »
Keeping a sunny and playful disposition comes in handy in most lines of work, but the talent for gallows humor is even more important when you’re on the front lines of social services like the Citizen Potawatomi Nation Indian Child Welfare Department. A walking embodiment of that kind of outlook is Nickie Skaggs. Originally hailing Read More »
In 2013, there were 679,000 victims of child abuse and neglect throughout the United States according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children & Families. Yet there is a movement focused on preventing this plague, as people across the U.S. wear blue ribbons in support of these victims. While April Read More »
When one thinks about the toughest jobs of the more than 2,200 employees of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, services like the police and health clinics likely comes to mind. Yet to anyone organizing a couple dozen teenagers in an after school setting, the notion of “toughest” takes on a whole new meaning. Offering one Read More »