On May 30, 2013, OJJDP Administrator Robert L. Listenbee offered opening remarks at a meeting of OJJDP's tribal grantees in Arlington, VA. The meeting was attended by representatives of about 100 tribes from 22 states who are participating in OJJDP’s Tribal Youth Program, Tribal Juvenile Detention and Reentry Program, and Tribal Juvenile Accountability Discretionary Grant Program. Representatives included program coordinators, program staff, and tribal leaders. The event was organized by Educational Development Center, Inc., OJJDP’s training and technical assistance provider.

Among other topics, Mr. Listenbee discussed the creation of a new American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) commission on children exposed to violence. The commission, which is part of the Attorney General’s Defending Childhood Initiative, will be a joint effort between the Departments of Justice and the Interior and tribal governments to improve the identification and treatment of AI/AN children exposed to violence. The creation of the commission was a key component of the final report and recommendations issued in December 2012 by the Attorney General’s National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence. Mr. Listenbee was co-chair of the national task force.

“The most important thing I want to emphasize is that the commission will support American Indian and Alaska Native tribes as they define their own responses to this issue. And it will involve tribal youth closely all along the way in developing solutions,” Mr. Listenbee said.

The 2-day meeting included plenary sessions, small-group talking circles, and four workshop tracks: Justice Systems, Capacity Building, Adolescent Programming, and Youth Health and Wellness. The topics and tracks were identified primarily from a survey of grantee needs and interests. Workshops covered a range of topics, including:

• Truancy prevention models.
• Using OJJDP grants to build a strong, healthy program for children, youth, and families.
• Tribal juvenile court policy development.
• Building a sustainable foundation for tribal mentoring programs.
• Alternatives to detention.
• Tribal and state court collaborations: Best practices.
• Addressing Native American juvenile rights issues and detention reform in Indian country through the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative.
• Project Venture: An evidence-based model for Indian country.
• Cultural identity and youth resiliency.
• Tribal justice systems.
• Capacity building in Alaska: Community partnerships.
• Supporting the voice of tribal youth.
• Restorative practices.
• American Indian Life Skills, a community-driven suicide prevention curriculum.

Resources:

More information about OJJDP’s programs for tribal youth is available online. To learn more about the Attorney General’s Defending Childhood Initiative, the National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence, and the national task force’s final report and recommendations, visit the Web site of the U.S. Department of Justice.