ALL AGES
Family Services
Family Services
Family Services provides critical support and advocacy to Native women, mothers, children, and families. There are three primary service areas: Indian Child Welfare Act compliance monitoring and support services, early intervention support to prevent families from entering the child protection system, and support and case management for women who’ve experienced sexual assault or domestic violence. Below are more detailed descriptions of the services offered.
If you are currently experiencing an emergency, please call 911.
If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, please call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.
If you are seeking shelter, call the shelter hotline in Ramsey County at 612-248-2350 or in Hennepin County at 651-291-0211.
For assistance with situations involving domestic violence call the Day 1 Crisis Lifeline at 866-223-1111 or visit https://www.thehotline.org.
Family Services programs
Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Services
Early Intervention Services
Indigenous Women’s Life Net (IWLN) Program
Program Descriptions
Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Services
ICWA Court Monitor Program
The Court Monitor attends court hearings to observe and monitor for Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) law violations. ICWA is a restorative law that sets minimum federal standards for child custody cases involving Native children, prioritizing their best interests and strengthening family and tribal stability. It mandates efforts to keep families intact, prioritizes out-of-home placements within the family and community, and ensures the child’s tribal nation and family are fully informed and involved in state court proceedings.
The Court Monitor provides ICWA training to judges, attorneys, and social workers. The program’s goal is to increase ICWA compliance in court proceedings. The widely distributed ICWA Court Monitor Newsletter is available through the program for state and national stakeholders. To inquire about receiving the quarterly newsletter, please connect with ICWA Court Monitor Christine Pedersen at cpedersen@maicnet.org.
Tribal Liaison Program
The Tribal Liaison project is the only program in the country providing services to out-of-state tribes that acts on behalf of tribes in court with their authorization. Tribal Liaisons gather information from all court parties and share it with the tribe so they can make informed recommendations. The goal is to increase tribal participation and promote family preservation, cultural connections, and reunification. The program has long-standing relationships with tribes throughout the United States. The Tribal Liaisons currently work directly with Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) services for the following tribes:
- Oglala Sioux Tribe
- Standing Rock Sioux Tribe
- Rosebud Sioux Tribe
- Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate
- Yankton Sioux Tribe
- Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe
- Three Affiliated Tribes
- Spirit Lake
- Omaha Tribe of Nebraska
- Northern Cheyenne
- Rocky Boy
- Blackfeet Nation
- Cherokee Nation
- Eastern Band of Cherokee
- Tohono O’odham Tribe
- San Carlos Apache
- Navajo Nation
- Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe
- Bad River Ojibwe
- Hannahville
- Sault Ste Marie
- Iowa Tribe of Kansas
- and others
Early Intervention Services
Early Intervention Program
The Early Intervention Program provides financial support and referrals to Native American families in the Twin Cities Metro Area. To be eligible, clients must have children 18 years old or younger living in the home and can NOT currently have an open child protection case. Relatives of children can apply if they are the primary caregivers. Clients are referred to the Early Intervention Program by community partners, Minneapolis American Indian Center staff, and county workers. We are always looking for additional referring partners.
Financial assistance can be provided for back due rent, a deposit, past due bills, children’s clothing, and cultural activities. All applications are reviewed by the Early Intervention Coordinator and all funding distributed is at the program’s discretion. Early Intervention Program funding also assists families in cultural activities, including field trips to cultural sites and activities such as Family Fun Night, a monthly evening of family-friendly activities hosted by the Culture Language Arts Network and other Minneapolis American Indian Center programs.
Family Stability Program
As one of the longest-standing programs in Family Services, the goal of Family Stability is to prevent families experiencing crises from entering the child protection system. The project provides case management, connection to resources, assistance with limited emergency financial needs, and support completing referrals. Referrals to the program can be through self-referral, a Social Worker, a school professional, a Hennepin County worker, or a community agency. Families and individuals need to be residing in Hennepin County to participate in the program.
Special Focus Program
The Special Focus Program works with families experiencing crises and provides case management, connection to resources, help completing referrals, and assistance with limited emergency financial needs. Special focus works to prevent families from entering the child protection system as well as providing support to families already involved in the child protection system.
Referrals to the program can be through:
- self-referral,
- a social worker,
- a school professional,
- a county worker,
- or a community agency.
Bright Beginnings
Bright Beginnings works with Native American women who are or are at risk of abusing substances and are currently pregnant or have recently delivered. Intensive case management services and weekly group meetings provide parenting and cultural education to help women in their sobriety. Cultural teachings provided to program participants include ceremony teachings, women’s teachings, ribbon skirt making, creation stories, moccasin making, seasonal teachings, medicine gathering/sage picking, and more.
Bright Beginnings assists moms and families with newborn and baby items, transportation to appointments, including connection to prenatal appointments, and any needed treatment or chemical health evaluation.
Referrals to the program can be through self-referral, a social worker, a school professional, a county worker, or a community agency. Bright Beginnings is partnering with Hennepin County on a pilot program to intervene in Child Protection cases earlier with the goal of keeping babies with their mothers.
Bright Beginnings Whole Family Systems
Through the Whole Family Systems Project, Bright Beginnings works with the State of Minnesota to examine system barriers. It is funded by a Minnesota Department of Human Services Supported Whole Family Systems five-year grant. We’ve worked with current and former Bright Beginnings moms and other community teams to coordinate responses to child welfare administration, housing, and hospitals around specific policy and system change through the program. The need for these changes has been identified by Native mothers who have experienced the systems and witnessed the barriers, inequitable treatment, and disparities.
A pilot project with Hennepin County is underway to support situations when Child Protection Services is involved. A Bright Beginnings case manager is contacted when Child Protection Services investigates cases at the hospital, and they work with the family to create a safety circle, plan, and arrange support so that newborn babies can remain at home.
Indigenous Women’s Life Net (IWLN) Program
IWLN Domestic Violence Housing Program
This program assists Native American women facing domestic violence and helps them obtain shelter, emergency services, and housing. We can also assist with technology to complete applications online. Referrals to the program can be through self-referral, shelter workers, a social worker, a school professional, a county worker, or a community agency.
IWLN Sexual Assault Case Management
Indigenous Women’s Life Net helps women who are survivors of sexual assault. We provide direct services such as resources and referrals for other programs. We offer transportation assistance, one-on-one, case management, court accompaniment, etc. to empower clients and assist with their wellbeing, self-sufficiency, and healing.
PROGRAM STAFF
Laura Newton
Program Director
Cell (612) 419-3522
Office (612) 879-1714
lnewton@maicnet.org
Kassidy Burns
Bright Beginnings Coordinator/Data Manager
Cell (612) 468-6940
Office (612) 879-1735
kburns@maicnet.org
Shania Thompson
Bright Beginnings Case Manager
sthompson@maicnet.org
Mikayla Maxwell
Tribal Liaison Supervisor
Cell (612) 760-6037
mmaxwell@maicnet.org
Elise LaGarde
Tribal Liason
Cell (612) 431-5277
elagarde@maicnet.org
Rachel LaRose
Indigenous Women’s Life Net Coordinator/Case Manager
Cell (952) 356-4011
rlarose@maicnet.org
Rebecca Jackson
Indigenous Women’s Life Net Housing Case Manager
Cell (651) 392-1262
rejackson@maicnet.org
Claudia Smith
Bright Beginnings Case Manager
Cell (612) 749-9612
csmith@maicnet.org
Raeven Wishteyah
Case Aid
Office (612) 468-6972
Cell (612) 879-1715
rwishteyah@maicnet.org
Christine Pedersen
ICWA Court Monitor
cpedersen@maicnet.org