Puyallup Tribe, Tribal Youth Program

S’Puyalupubsh Social, Health, Educational, and Justice programs serve 18,000+ urban Natives living on and near the Puyallup Reservation, providing a high state of readiness to build a culturally specific Juvenile Justice System that results in healing and reduces juvenile criminal behavior. A systems approach is critically needed to fully address individual, family and community traumas that result in recidivism, incarceration, and eventual homelessness. This project will intentionally reduce federal funding over the life of the grant as sustainable system services are demonstrated to be effective. Currently, critically needed youth justice-related services still largely exist in “silos” which results in gaps, overlaps, and lack of effectiveness - a legacy of the piecemeal programming handed down over past generations, largely from the federal government. This project will demonstrate that sustained, self-determined, Coast Salish-specific system-building results in healing and therefore reduced juvenile engagement in punitive responses such as incarceration, therefore repeating the cycle. A key activity will be to hire a “transitional” system-building mental health professional to work alongside key staff and stakeholders to provide direct services and reduce crime and recidivism through healing; particularly for substance misuse and behavioral needs. The liaison will provide professional guidance to stakeholders, partners, and families to increase capacities to address untreated behavioral issues. We will (1) fill critical system gaps to (2) demonstrate the effectiveness of a unified approach that results in (3) reduced re-arrest and/or reduced incarceration. This will lead to realistic case plans, targeted services, progress monitoring, and the long-term viability of our youth.