Beginning in 2014, various task forces and studies were established at the Minnesota state government level to examine child welfare, and address any perceived shortcomings. Minnesota leads the nation in disproportionality for American Indian children in the child welfare system, and has for some time. This disparity causes families to be disproportionately negatively impacted both by out of home placement rates, and by the child welfare system in Minnesota.
The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) was passed because so many Indian children were being removed and placed outside of their families, communities, and tribes. Current levels of out of home placement in Minnesota are at pre-ICWA levels.
In 2019, tribes made a final recommendation, identifying the University of Minnesota Duluth’s Center for Regional and Tribal Child Welfare Studies (CRTCWS) as possessing the competency knowledge in ICWA, MIFPA and Tribal issues, as well as relationships with tribes required to provide training. Funding was provided in May ‘19, and led to the creation of the Tribal Training and Certification Partnership (TTCP) on January 1, 2020.
The funding was used to hire 3 full-time staff and the request for space in the Tech Village in Downtown Duluth. Since then, the TTCP has grown to nine full-time staff, 15 community trainers, and a renovation of the office space. A full comprehensive time can be viewed here.
Read more about our mission.