“Let us put our minds together and see what life we can make for our children.” ~Sitting Bull

The Fort Belknap Child Support Program exists to promote the well-being of our children by advocating and enforcing parental responsibilities through excellent services and customer care.

The Fort Belknap Child Support Program met with several tribal programs with similar clientele to discuss our goals and objectives of our Tribal Innovation Grant. During this meeting those involved voiced their ideas on what they would like to see the TIG accomplish. Those involved offered their services and assistance to help the clients succeed. 477 Employment & Training Program TANF/GA Program HeadStart Early Childhood Education Program HeadStart Fatherhood Program Fort Belknap Tribal Courts Fort Belknap Planning Department Fort Belknap CDC Program Fort Belknap Social Services Program Fort Belknap Domestic Violence Program Opportunity Link Fort Belknap Child Care Program Aaniiih Nakoda College Regional HRDC Office

Prepare clients to successfully enter the workforce in order to become financially responsible for themselves and their children. By obtaining and keeping employment clients will gain confidence, self-esteem, and have the willingness to support their children both financially and emotionally. Provide needed tools to prepare non-custodial parents to enter the workforce such as: 1.Chemical Dependency Treatment Referrals 2.Payment Plans for Outstanding Court Fines 3.Appropriate Work Clothing 4.Gas Vouchers 5.Training for clients: a)Family Strengthening b)Personal Finance/Budgeting c)Soft Skills d)Resume’ Writing

1. Reduce unmanageable child support debt 2. Promote non-custodial parents’ positive engagement in the lives of their children 3. Increase non-custodial parent employment and family economic stability 4. Improve family relationships

Family Strengthening Course Elder Facilitators Collaboration with other Programs Relationship with Tribal Court System Relationship with Law Enforcement Program Provide Various Trainings for Clients Family Activities Employment Referrals Professional & Knowledgeable Staff

Lack of Motivation Lack/Low Self Esteem No Experience with Job Searching No Employment History No Reliable Transportation No Child Care Lack of Education & Skills Substance Abuse Problems Non-Payment of Ordered Support Limited or No Visitation with Children

 Existing Child Support Clients with arrears  Written Correspondence  Telephone Correspondence  Face to Face Meetings  Program Media, i.e.; Radio Station, Fliers, etc.  Community Job Fairs  Referrals from other Programs

 Assessment of clients barriers by personal interview  Plan of Action  Court Ordered to complete Family Strengthening Course  Work Clothing Incentives  Gas Card Incentives  Grocery Card Incentives  Potential Employment Opportunities  Resume writing  Transportation to work interviews

Richard TashinaSimon Marty Winston

Employment  4 clients employed Island Mountain Development Group Call Center Talent Search Educational Program Fisher Construction (2)  2 clients with pending employment  1 client in pre-application process Family Strengthening Class – ongoing Financial Literacy/Budget Training - ongoing

 Intensive case management is needed with clients in order for them to begin and continue through process.  Work with a smaller group of individuals instead of the larger group we planned for. This would allow for more intensive  Needed a clearer and more concise timeline of completion of client goals and objectives – 2 month intervals for each step  Clients are accustomed to someone “hand holding” them in all aspects of life. We need someone who is trained in motivating our clients to take the initiative themselves.  Clients became more aware of themselves and want to assert themselves and become responsible.  Clients want to identify with the older ways of parenting learned through their Family Strengthening experience from our Tribal Elders.

 Family Strengthening Class moderated by our Tribal Elders has been successful with our clients.  Clients are requesting continued support even after they have completed FS Class in order to learn more.  Year 1: 7 of 9 clients were employed  Year 2: 5 of 6 clients are employed, 1 pre- employment stage.  Getting clients to become involved has been a struggle.

 Case Specialists will identify one client each and have a 6 month plan for each.  Case Specialists will have intensive case management with their client to determine their barriers to employment and offer solutions  Family Strengthening Class will still be a part of their process  Financial Literacy/Budgeting Training will still be a part of their process

We envision our reservation to be a place in which our children are cherished and valued by both of their parents and the community.