Indian Child Welfare

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Tribal CAPS

Tribal CAPS provides hands-on services to protect the best interests of Cherokee children and families. Sometimes children are removed from homes located within Cherokee Nation jurisdiction; sometimes cases transfer into Tribal Court from various State courts. In these cases, it is the tribal CAPS unit and not the state Department of Human Services who has jurisdiction. The Tribal CAPS unit works with families to help solve the problems that led to children being removed from the home. Meanwhile, the CAPS unit seeks out relatives to help care for the children. If there is a service tribal CAPS can't provide, workers will identify and secure those services for the family.

The Tribal CAPS unit makes frequent home visits to families and to foster homes to make sure the needs of the children are being met. The Tribal CAPS unit frequently provides transportation to families to help them complete their services. It is the first goal of the Tribal CAPS unit to ensure the safety of the children while keeping Cherokee families together.