Wellness Court Enhacement Training

2023 Training Materials

September 12-14, 2023

Putting the Wellness Court into Code (PowerPoint PDF)

Lauren van Schilfgaarde, Assistant Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law

Session Description: This session will discuss the recent TLPI publication: Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts: Formalizing Healing to Wellness Courts in Tribal Law (2022), which tracks ways in Tribes have drafted Wellness Courts into Tribal law. Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts are restorative justice components of the Tribal Court. To the extent they operate a docket, adjudicate cases, and, most critically, heal and restore members and the community, some Tribes have noted their existence in the Tribal code. Because each Tribe is structurally and culturally unique, there is no one correct way to promulgate a Wellness Court into Tribal law, or if that exercise is even necessary. This session will identify the considerations for code drafting, identify variations, and push Tribes to contemplate how the Wellness Court operates in relation to other parts of the Tribal judiciary and Tribal law.

Justice Systems from a Child’s Perspective: Supporting Native Child Victims and Witnesses (PowerPoint PDF) (Handout)

Alisha Morrison, Senior Program Manager, Tribal Justice Exchange, Center for Justice Innovation

Session Description: Children are amongst the most vulnerable members of our society and are widely recognized as requiring care and protection, yet they are often victims of or witnesses to substance misuse, abuse, and other crimes. As a result, children may have to navigate child legal systems that are intimidating, confusing, and overwhelming for adults, let alone for children, whose systems’ involvement may exacerbate their trauma and distress. In addition, Native American child victims and witnesses have unique historical, community, and cultural contexts, and often face the added challenge of navigating complicated jurisdictional issues between Tribal, state, and federal justice systems.

Implementing the Peacemaking Process into Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts (PowerPoint PDF)

Grace Carson, Skadden Fellow, Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Session Description: Peacemaking is a traditional way of resolving conflict. It is a community-based process that addresses the concerns of all interested parties by focusing on community care and kinship to both repair and prevent conflict and harm. It is informed by a Tribe’s culture, spirituality, knowledge, and ways of being. This session focuses on the key aspects of peacemaking and how its goals intersect with the goals of Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts. Additionally, this session discusses strategies to implement peacemaking processes into Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts and how doing this can better support the healing and well-being of a court’s participants and a Tribe’s community as a whole.

Overview of Tribal Law and Policy Institute’s Mentor Court Program (PowerPoint PDF)

Alyssa Harrold, Tribal Wellness Court Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Kristina Pacheco, Tribal Wellness Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Session Description: An overview on healing to wellness programs and why a peer-to-peer learning program specific for Tribal Justice systems is necessary to promote healing and advancement in Healing to Wellness Courts. The session will cover how the program began, the future of the program, and how Tribes can apply and the benefits of working with the mentor courts.

Incorporating Culture and Teachings into Your Healing to Wellness Program/Reconnecting to Our Roots (PowerPoint PDF)

Mandi Moon, Community Resource Navigator, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe
Valarie Jones, Re-entry Case Manager, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe

Session Description: When someone is lost in addiction, they lose their values, teachings, sense of culture, and trust within their family as well as the community. As a way to reconnect to those things, interviewing an elder or cultural leader can be helpful in many ways. It helps establish or rebuild a relationship, potentially build a support person, help build trust within the community, and helps the participant learn or reconnect with the Tribe, culture, and traditions. During this session you will learn how to set up a similar component that is suitable for your program.

Family-Centered Practices for Family Healing to Wellness Courts (PowerPoint PDF)

Will Blakeley, Program Associate, Center for Children and Family Future
Ashay Shah, Senior Program Associate, Center Children and Family Futures

Session Description: This session discusses key components of a family-centered, behavior-focused, problem-solving approach in Family Healing to Wellness Court (FHWC) precourt staffing and court hearings. When they first emerged, FHWCs focused primarily on a parent’s recovery. Over the past decade, many FHWCs evolved to meet the individual needs of parents and children. Still, services felt disconnected from one another and often overlooked the health of parent-child or family relationships. Today, FHWCs treat the parent, child, and the family unit as a whole—helping families break the cycle of substance use, child abuse, and neglect—while paving the way for healthy, stable home environments where children can thrive. This session makes abstract concepts concrete, illustrating how teams can apply these principles in FHWC practices, including behavior responses, phases, precourt staffing, and hearings.

Strength-Based Language: Understanding the Impact of Word Choice on Treatment Court Outcomes (PowerPoint PDF)

Courtney Williams, Senior Program Manager, National Training and Technical Assistance, Center for Justice Innovation
Karen Otis, Deputy Director, Treatment Court Programs, National Training and Technical Assistance, Center for Justice Innovation

Session Description: The way treatment court team members speak to and about court participants can impact their success. Research has shown that language has the power to exacerbate or lessen stigma, alter participant perceptions of court and treatment, and impact the quality of treatment provided. Examining how team members speak to and about participants is a best practice that all treatment court teams can implement to improve outcomes in their court. Recovery language evolves and, therefore, should be an ongoing focus of every treatment court team’s process. This presentation discusses the current research on the relationship between language and participant success. Recommendations on how to change the language used by treatment court teams when talking to and about participants will be provided.

Tulalip Healing to Wellness Program: The First Program to be Recognized as Both Tribal Law and Policy Institute Mentor Court and All Rise Mentor Court (PowerPoint PDF)

Peter Boome, Associate Judge, Tulalip Tribes

Session Description: TBD

Piloting the Tribal Court Risk Need Resilience and Responsivity Tool (PowerPoint PDF)

Adelle Fontanet-Torres, Director, Tribal Justice Exchange, Center for Justice Innovation
Lina Villegas, Research Associate, Center for Justice Innovation

Session Description: The Center for Justice Innovation, in collaboration with staff from the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, has developed a Tribal-specific risk-need responsivity (RNR) tool for use with Tribal Courts. This Tribal RNR tool has been designed with the unique characteristics of Native populations in mind and focuses on highlighting individual resilience, as well as identifying needs and opportunities for engagement with services. The center is now in the process of working with several Tribal Courts to pilot the tool. This presentation will discuss the design of the tool and will walk through the types of information the tool will be collecting. This presentation will also explain how the tool is unique in addressing the needs of Native populations and will highlight how the information gathered can be used to support individuals through case management.

Resiliency in Juvenile Healing to Wellness Program Design (PowerPoint PDF)

Selina Kenmille, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Coordinator, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
Nan Benally, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Training and Technical Assistance Specialist, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: The session begins with an overview of pitfalls and triumphs during the planning stages and discuss opportunities in creating curriculum fit to organizational goals. Presenters will explore the importance of having a knowledgeable staff and committed advisory committee and will discuss pivotal planning in creating a Juvenile Healing to Wellness program. The presenters will demonstrate how community asset mapping is useful in programming. More importantly, the presenters will acknowledge the importance of culture and utilizing Tribal elders in creating a strong foundation for Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts.

Veterans’ Outreach and Legal Assistance Roundtable Outcomes (PowerPoint PDF)

Andrea Seielstad, National American Indian Court Judges Association, Consultant; Professor of Law and Director of Clinical Programs, University of Dayton, School of Law
Elton Naswood, Program Coordinator, National American Indian Court Judges Association

Session Description: Building upon research and consultation with participants from September 2022, the National American Indian Court Judges Association convened two roundtables for the purposes of assessing working models and determining future opportunities for outreach and legal services delivery to American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) veterans. The ultimate goal is to develop one or more focused pilot projects that would best meet the needs of AI/AN veterans. This session will focus on the methodology of using roundtables to encourage buy-in and gather input from key stakeholders in developing key programmatic goals in the development of AI/AN veterans-focused legal clinics. This session will discuss the outcomes, information, and insights gathered from the roundtables held in Albuquerque, NM, and Anchorage, AK, in the summer of 2023.

The Decolonization of Language in your Healing to Wellness Program a Guide to Using Language and Culture as the Foundation of Your Program (PowerPoint PDF)

Alyssa Harrold, Tribal Wellness Court Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Matthew Lesky, Attorney, Court Administrator, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Court

Session Description: This presentation will focus on how to utilize your cultural values, language, and community mission within your program. Presenters will be focusing on how to write or adapt manuals to remove the federal language and focus more on traditional values within the best practice model. Audience members will hear real examples from this approach in programming and how participants respond to removing federal language from requirements and focusing more on traditional activities and engagement as a measurement for success.

Impacts and Implication of McGirt Ruling on Oklahoma Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts (PowerPoint PDF)

Patti Buhl, Director, Department of Juvenile Justice, Cherokee Nation
Leah Hitcher, Coordinator Juvenile Healing to Wellness, Cherokee Nation
Alisha Edelen, Director, Community Services, Choctaw Nation
Amber Loftis, Program Manager, Juvenile Services, Choctaw Nation
Britney Bush, Program Coordinator, Juvenile Healing to Wellness, Choctaw Nation
Pat Sekaquaptewa, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts Training and Technical Assistance Manager, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: Due to the 2020 Supreme Court ruling McGirt v. Oklahoma, both the Cherokee Nation and the Choctaw Nation were afforded the right to prosecute crimes within their reservation boundaries. The impacts of the ruling provided each Tribe the ability to creatively work with Indigenous youth in a restorative capacity. While the ruling posed many challenges for both Tribes, the Tribes were able to rely on their resilience and develop preventative programs to keep Indigenous youth out of the justice system. With the incorporation of cultural healing and assisting the youth and families in gaining an understanding of the impacts of historical trauma, Tribes in Oklahoma are able to use a restorative approach in the juvenile justice system.

This session will highlight how the Choctaw Nation and the Cherokee Nation were able to rise to the challenge of having jurisdiction of all Tribal members within their reservation boundaries. In addition, we will discuss how both the Cherokee Nation and Choctaw Nation are taking a multigenerational approach and working with the family systems as a whole.

Indigenous Models of Restorative Practices (PowerPoint PDF)

Stephanie Autumn, Director, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Grace Carson, Skadden Fellow, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Suzanne Garcia, Tribal Legal and Child Welfare Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: Indigenous models of restorative practice effect long term systems change by focusing on strengthening relationships. Indigenous models of restorative justice are an approach justice that attempts to restore harm at its roots. This session will examine these two models that are related yet very different. Presenters will explore the philosophy, values, concepts, and framework of each of these Indigenous models, differentiate them from those utilized in western system environments and engage attendees in a discussion about how these models can support successful juvenile healing to wellness courts. Presenters will discuss current Indigenous Restorative Practices applications that build relationships, communities, and the capacity to lift the voice and choice of families and youth who are most impacted by the disparities that exist in Tribal and non-Tribal communities and restorative justice applications that emphasize healing and accountability rather than compliance through a punitive approach.

A Chronic Disease That Requires Long-Term Recovery Management (The Recovery Management Toolkit) (PowerPoint PDF)

Jeffrey N. Kushner, Montana Statewide Drug Court Coordinator, Montana Supreme Court/Office of the Court Administrator

Session Description: Session will begin by describing substance use dependency as a chronic disease and the implications for Healing to Wellness Courts. Session will include an understanding of recovery capital and the need for extensive accrual of recovery capital while in Healing to Wellness Court. How to measure recovery capital from initial entry to the ladder phases of drug court to include a recovery capital scale and recovery capital worksheets. Worksheets will provide a culturalized version for Native Americans as revised by the Native American/Alaska Native Addiction Technology Transfer Center Network. Finally, the session will provide research indicating that planning for recovery management must go beyond time in Healing to Wellness Court and strategies and instruments to facilitate this extended support.

Bernalillo County Metro Court Urban Native American Healing to Wellness Court: Changing Lives Through Traditional Healing (PowerPoint PDF)

Hon. Renee Torres, Judge, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court
Cayla Sanderson, Program Manager, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court
Arianna Chavarria, Probation Officer, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court
Vicki Johnston, Case Manager Supervisor, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court
Jered Lee, Traditional Wellness Program Coordinator, First Nations Community Healthsource
Elizabeth Gerlach, Behavioral Health Treatment Provider, First Nations Community Healthsource

Session Description: This session will provide information about how the Urban Native American Healing to Wellness Program meets the needs of a diverse Native Population in an urban setting in Albuquerque, New Mexico. An overview of the program will be provided detailing how the participant enters the program and progresses through graduation. The Healing to Wellness team will share how they utilize their role to help create a community like atmosphere for the participants. The presentation will focus on the team’s success in providing traditional healing methods that have resulted in the program’s success.

Opioid Responses for Courts in Tribal and Rural Areas (PowerPoint PDF)

Melanie P. Fritzsche, Senior Program Manager, Tribal Justice Exchange, Center for Justice Innovation
Alejandra Garcia, Associate Director, Treatment Courts Technical Assistance, Center for Justice Innovation

Session Description: Treatment courts across the country have been tasked with responding to the opioid crisis through rapidly linking participants at risk for overdose to evidence-based treatment, intensive case management, and frequent supervision. Though these approaches are being integrated in some state courts, Tribal justice systems face unique obstacles in addressing the opioid epidemic that have made responding to this crisis even more challenging. Additionally, Native Americans are disproportionately affected by high addiction and overdose rates, which creates greater urgency to develop Tribal-specific responses to this epidemic. Center for Justice Innovation staff will discuss how the opioid epidemic has impacted Tribal nations and will share examples of how Tribes are responding with culturally relevant opportunities and services to meet the needs of their communities. Additionally, center staff will discuss themes and lessons learned from opioid courts in New York that could be integrated in Healing to Wellness Courts to help address the opioid epidemic.

Trauma and Staff Wellness (PowerPoint PDF)

Marilyn Zimmerman, Sr. Director of Policy and Programs, National Native Children’s Trauma Center
Ethleen Iron Cloud Two-Dogs, Tribal Youth Training and Technical Assistance Manager, Tribal Youth Resource Center
Stephanie Autumn, Director, Tribal Youth Resource Center (Moderator)

Session Description: Participants will look at how to practice staff wellness in a stressful work environment. This module will highlight the toll that working with traumatized youth can take on staff and the organization. It will help participants reduce their own stress and address challenging situations. This module will emphasize secondary traumatic stress, however, it will also incorporate conversation revolving around other stresses in the work environment.

So You Want to Start a Family Healing to Wellness Court? Where Do We Start? (PowerPoint PDF)

Will Blakeley, Program Associate, Center for Children and Family Futures
Ashay Shah, Senior Program Associate, Center Children and Family Futures

Session Description: Family Healing to Wellness Court (FHWC) is a promising model for improving outcomes for families affected by substance use disorder and in the child welfare system. The therapeutic model of FHWCs relies on cross-systems collaboration and family-centered, trauma-informed approaches to engage, support, and serve children, parents, and families affected by substance use. Implementing FHWCs provides juvenile and family court professionals with a unique opportunity to disrupt intergenerational cycles of multisystem involvement including the foster care-to-prison pipeline while improving outcomes and healing families affected by substance use.

This session is designed for Tribes interested in implementing a new or enhancing an existing FHWC. Attendees will learn about key planning and implementation considerations and resources to help communities begin improving outcomes for children and families.

Bridging the Gap between American Indian and Alaska Native Veterans Residing in “Legal Deserts” and Legal Service Providers in Other Locations (PowerPoint PDF)

Andrea Seielstad,, National American Indian Court Judges Association, Consultant; Professor of Law and Director of Clinical Programs, University of Dayton, School of Law
Regina Begay-Roanhorse, National American Indian Court Judges Association, Consultant; Court Administrator, Navajo Nation Judicial Branch Judicial Districts of Alamo, To’Hajiilee, Crownpoint and Pueblo Pintado

Session Description: American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) veterans and their families often reside in “legal deserts.” Legal deserts can be urban or rural geographical locations lacking in legal services fit to the specific needs of AI/AN veterans. Where legal services programs exist, they may be lacking in capacity for effective outreach, and few programs are situated to deliver legal services tailored to veteran-specific legal issues or culturally and trauma-informed representation that is effective for AI/AN veterans, their families, or their communities.

This session will present examples, case studies, and research about ways of connecting AI/AN veterans with appropriate legal services. The presentation will focus on “boots on the ground” means of conducting outreach and legal needs assessments, offer community legal education to veterans in the communities in which they live, and concentrate on models of legal services delivery that may utilize lawyers, law students, and veterans’ services organizations and advocates in remote and diverse locations and areas of legal expertise. Technology-enhanced methods of linking these legal services providers to veterans in rural locations will be specifically explored, along with methods of recruiting and training prospective legal providers, handling interjurisdictional and professional licensing issues, and addressing technical and administrative support needs for coordinating clinics and follow-up legal work.

Session participants will share concrete ideas and strategies toward the development and/or enhancement of effective linkages between AI/AN veterans and attorneys, law students, and veterans’ advocates who may be situated in other locations but in a position to provide information and assistance on legal issues identified as of high need to veterans.

The Henu Community Wellness Court (PowerPoint PDF)

Hon. Evelyn Dolchok, Chief Tribal Judge, Kenaitze Indian Tribe

Session Description: Henu Community Wellness Court is a joint-jurisdictional therapeutic court operated by the Kenaitze Indian Tribe and the State of Alaska Court system. The court serves adults who face legal trouble stemming from substance use (focusing on drug and alcohol offenders) including those in families with children in need of aid. The court aims to get to the root of substance use issues, offering participants resources to pursue sobriety rather than sending them directly to jail. This session will include dialogue about the joint Tribal and state court and what it takes for the participants to succeed.

Breaking Ground as a Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Coordinator (PowerPoint PDF)

Leah Hitcher, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Coordinator, Cherokee Nation
Roxanne Burtt, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Coordinator, Tule River Tribe
Julio De Los Santos, Juvenile Affairs Case Manager, Quapaw Nation
Erin Thin Elk, Consultant, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court coordinators will discuss making the move to becoming staff for their Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court. Panelists will explain their backgrounds, the learning curve, and takeaways during their initial hire. Coordinators will also provide stories about how previous experience helped prepare them for the expectations of being a Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court coordinator. Finally, panelists will provide words of encouragement to attendees on persistence and the value of seeing youth grow in a Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court setting.

Using Anishinaabe Culture to Support Recovery Principles In Programming (PowerPoint PDF)

Matthew Lesky, Attorney, Court Administrator, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Court
Kevin Gassco, Male Cultural Resource Advisor, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Court
Miigwaans Smith, Female Cultural Resource Advisor, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Court

Session Description: Utilizing culture as a basis of programming has become an increasingly prevalent movement among tribal healing to wellness courts. The use of culture is often discussed as the element that distinguishes tribal court programs from state court programs. How culture is incorporated and used however makes a difference on how effective it is in assisting clients in creating recovery capital. While culture has always been an element of the Waabshki-Miigwan program, how it is used and presented in programming has evolved over time. This presentation will discuss how changes in the approach to the incorporation of culture over time have led to better outcomes for clients and a growth in recovery capital outside of the program. The presentation will also discuss the importance of ensuring that the culture elements you are incorporating reflect the cultural and traditional practices of your community.

Tribal Control of Alcohol—A Tool for Wellness (PowerPoint PDF)

Juliet Lee, Senior Research Scientist, Study Director, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation
Rachell Tenorio, Research Associate, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation
Joseph Flies Away, CAB Member, Community and Nation Building Facilitator

Session Description: Tribal Courts consider many cases in which alcohol use is a factor. Many individuals appearing in Adult Wellness Courts may be referred to alcohol and other drug treatment. Compared to treatment, alcohol problem prevention saves both money and suffering. Alcohol control policies are a critical tool for prevention. The Healthy Tribal Nations project is working with Tribes across twelve states to understand and evaluate how these Tribes and states are using law to control alcohol and alcohol-related problems. In this session, project staff will present the range of alcohol policies; review the most effective policies for the prevention of alcohol problems, including alcohol-involved violence and intoxicated driving; and consider how Tribes have been applying alcohol policies for prevention. In breakout sessions, participants can consider ideas for developing policies for your Tribal Nations.

Wellness and Healing for Native Youth through Traditional Restorative Practices within Tribal Youth Peer Courts (PowerPoint PDF)

Dwight K. Lomayesva, Coordinator, Intertribal Court of Southern California; Executive Director, America Indian Recruitment Programs
Hon. Angela Medrano, Pro Tem Judge, Intertribal Court of Southern California
Dianne Cisneros, Tribal Youth Court Coordinator, Intertribal Court of Southern California
Nan Benally, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Training and Technical Assistance Specialist, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: Tribal Youth Court (TYC), is a division of the Intertribal Court of Southern California that serves San Diego County and Riverside County Tribes. TYC is a diversion-based project with a mission to provide at-risk Native youth opportunities for accountability, growth, and healing through wellness-based responses. Statistically, Native youth have the lowest graduation rates among all races. According to Kidsdata, Native youth have ranked disproportionately high within the categories of gang membership, drug and alcohol use, and contemplating suicide. All areas point to our Native youth having great social challenges and making misguided decisions that may result in harm and ultimately leads to a pathway toward the juvenile justice system. TYC created a model program that utilizes restorative justice ideals and community to work with Native juvenile offenders through a youth peer court. Including youth peers into our model led to the development of the Native Youth Peer Decision Makers training program that will engage our Peer Decision Makers to guide them in their intervention decisions within the Youth Court and provide them greater understanding on Tribal custom and traditions, as well as Tribal governance. Collaborating with our Tribes, regional universities, and native organizations, we are working together to bring wellness within our Tribal communities. Our ultimate goal is to bring Native youth back into our communities through wellness intervention within the Youth Peer Court. Native youth peers will hear and assist in the intervention of the juvenile participants. Tribal Youth Court staff share their stories, including the motivation for a Juvenile Court, planning efforts, struggles and challenges, strengths and accomplishments, and future plans for the program to ensure sustainability and growth.

Mentor Courts Roundtable

Alyssa Harrold, Tribal Wellness Court Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: A peer-to-peer learning opportunity to hear from the three founding Tribal mentor courts. Sharing their strategies for success, innovative strategies, and opportunities for growth.

Cannabis and Tribal Courts: The Changing Landscape (PowerPoint PDF)

Hon. Eric Mehnert, Chief Judge, Penobscot Nation Tribal Courts; American Bar Association Region 1 Judicial Outreach Liaison
Hon. Mary Kate Huffman, Judge, Second District Court of Appeals, Dayton Ohio; American Bar Association National Judicial Fellow

Session Description: Despite remaining strictly prohibited as a Schedule I drug at the federal level, a cascading series of state legislative actions and voter initiatives in the past ten years has resulted in recreational cannabis legalization in almost half the states and the availability of cannabis for medical use in at least forty-one states. These changing dynamics are coming to Indian country as well. The transitions in the perceptions and status of cannabis in many jurisdictions results in significant impact on courts, including Healing to Wellness dockets. The faculty will discuss a variety of topics important to the judicial and court staff development of an in-depth understanding public and legal perspectives on cannabis use, the psychoactive effect of cannabis use on the brain and the body, the impact of cannabis use on the developing adolescent brain, cannabis use disorder, treatment modalities, and the impact of cannabis on court supervision, including the effect on federally funded courts.

Cultural Considerations in Tracking Qualitative Data (PowerPoint PDF)

Erin Thin Elk, Consultant, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Session Description: Some years ago, a program located on an American Indian Reservation, received funding to assist children with mental health needs. The funding agency stipulated that the program participate in a specified data collection process. The company that was contracted to do the data collection part of the evaluation program did not have a clear understanding of the culture of the Tribal community. The evaluation and data collection was designed without the input of the Tribal programs which led to Tribal community members’ resistance in participation. While this example is fictitious, there are numerous accounts of Tribal communities being subject to inappropriate data tools without respect to the local culture and language. This session focuses on the importance of identifying cultural considerations in data collection. The facilitators will highlight the importance of cultural data collection strategies and the critical need to collaborate with Tribal communities to ensure their sovereignty is honored.

Negotiating Ethics Requirements on Healing to Wellness Court Teams (PowerPoint PDF)

Suzanne Garcia, Tribal Legal and Child Welfare Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Kristina Pacheco, Tribal Wellness Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Session Description: Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts require a team approach where information sharing and collaboration is critical to participants’ success. Each team member, however, has ethical obligations that they must navigate while they do this work. Presenters will set the context by discussing these various ethical obligations and then invite subject matter experts and attendees in the audience to join in a discussion about the successes and challenges they have seen in their practice.

Problem Gambling (PowerPoint PDF)

Sarah Sense-Wilson, Tulalip Tribes Problem Gambling Coordinator, Tulalip Behavioral Wellness Center

Session Description: TBD

The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) at the Supreme Court and Learning of Promising ICWA Practice through ICWA Courts (PowerPoint PDF)

Sheldon Spotted-Elk, Senior Director, Judicial National Engagement, Casey Family Programs

Session Description: Haaland v. Brackeen was decided 7-2 at the Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of the ICWA. During the buildup to the final decision, nearly 500 Tribes and twenty-plus states signed amicus briefs addressing the constitutionality and on-the-ground practice to support ICWA as the “gold standard of child welfare.” Attendees will learn about the decision and how through ICWA “Congress exercised that lawful authority to secure the right of Indian parents to raise their families as they please; the right of Indian children to grow in their culture; and the right of Indian communities to resist fading into the twilight of history. All of that is in keeping with the Constitution’s original design.” Further learn about ICWA courts—20 specialty courts—throughout the country that are capturing both the black letter and the spirit of the ICWA to improve legal outcomes for Indigenous families.

Best Practices in Conducting Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Processes (Intake, Staffing, Status Hearing and Case Management Meetings) (PowerPoint PDF)

Nan Benally, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Training and Technical Assistance Specialist, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Erin Thin Elk, Consultant, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Pat Sekaquaptewa, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts Training and Technical Assistance Manager, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Laura Smith, Program Coordinator, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Ethleen Iron Cloud-Two Dogs, Tribal Youth Training and Technical Assistance Manager, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: This session will feature a walk-through intake as well as Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court hearing. The intake will focus on some common questions and issues to avoid during these critical stages of participant involvement. Presenters will engage with the audience to gain their input on what next steps should be and what could have been done differently. The walk-through intake will address issues such as family involvement, participant willingness, and confidentiality. The performance will culminate in a Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Hearing where participants will show what to expect during a hearing and common issues that may stem from the intake/case management process.

The Danger on the Roads: Courts and Impaired Drivers (PowerPoint PDF)

Hon. Eric Mehnert, Chief Judge, Penobscot Nation Tribal Courts; American Bar Association Region 1 Judicial Outreach Liaison
Hon. Mary Kate Huffman, Judge, Second District Court of Appeals, Dayton Ohio; American Bar Association National Judicial Fellow

Session Description: In a recent study, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration collected data revealed that alcohol-related crashes in 2019 resulted in 14,219 fatalities, 497,000 nonfatal injuries, and $68.9 billion in economic costs. A person dies every 45 minutes in the United States resulting from drug- or alcohol-impaired driving. Despite the universally recognized dangers of driving while intoxicated, data indicates that alcohol-impaired driving deaths among American Indian and Alaska Natives rise to between two and seventeen times greater than rates among other racial or ethnic groups. This program will review research and data related to the dangers of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, the changing demographics of the impaired driver, evidence-based practices applied to driving under the influence, utilizing motivational interviewing in the adjudication, and supervision of drivers operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Mentor Court Workshop

Alyssa Harrold, Tribal Wellness Court Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: TBD.

Development Considerations for Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts in Alaska (PowerPoint PDF)

Pat Sekaquaptewa, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts Training and Technical Assistance Manager, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Grace Carson, Skadden Fellow, Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Session Description: Implementing a Healing to Wellness Court in Alaska is particularly complex because of a variety of issues, including limited Indian Country and privileged state jurisdiction in Alaska and unique challenges facing Tribes in rural Alaska. This session will explain those challenges and the solutions to them by setting out potential models and configurations for the design of Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts in Alaska. It will also discuss examples of memorandums of understanding and agreement between Tribal and state governments and organizations that would help to implement Healing to Wellness Courts in Alaska. This session will take directly from Tribal Law and Policy’s new publication, Development Considerations for Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts in Alaska, in which the intended purpose of the publication is to provide initial talking points for interprofessional (between law and treatment) and intergovernmental (between the Tribes and the state) dialogue and negotiations, as well as to provide a number of models with which to react. The authors hope to facilitate respectful good-faith discussions that will lead to the creation of something new and mutually beneficial, with adaptations and innovations that work for the Native communities served.

The Art of Rebuilding: The Willingness to Change (PowerPoint PDF)

Hon. Sherrie Harris, Juvenile Judge, San Carlos Tribal Court, San Carlos Apache Tribe
Hon. Karla Comanche, Chief Judge, San Carlos Tribal Court, San Carlos Apache Tribe
Laura Smith, Program Coordinator, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute (Moderator)

Session Description: COVID-19 presented challenges in the planning process; we will describe some of the challenges we experienced and discuss the steps we have taken to overcome and address these challenges, based on the feedback received from partners and stakeholders and reassessing the work done prepandemic. This reflection identified the need to improve communication and collaboration within our team as well as restructuring our approach to court development. The team was able to prioritize meeting the needs of community youth post-COVID-19 while still meeting project goals and objectives.

Telling Your Story: It’s More Than Just Numbers (PowerPoint PDF)

Nan Benally, Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court Training and Technical Assistance Specialist, Tribal Youth Resource Center, Tribal Law and Policy Institute
Angie Juárez-Monger, Tribal Wellness Court Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Session Description: Often programmatic success is defined by quantitative data measures. The session will demonstrate how to use data descriptively to capture the collective spirit of a community’s efforts that speak to the strengths-based models of healing, wellness, and programmatic success. Practice utilizing narratives to enhance how data can expand your program’s mission and goals and can tell the real success stories.

Restorative Legal Approaches: What Is Justice in Your Language? (PowerPoint PDF)

Sheldon Spotted Elk, Senior Director, Judicial National Engagement, Casey Family Programs

Session Description: Attendees will learn about approaches to restorative practices that are proximate to culture and trauma informed that are “with” families, rather than “to” families. Learn together and participate in envisioning a future of empowered families, safe children, and resilient communities.