Ahtna Dené Public Safety Program: Tribal Youth Program

The Ahtna Dené Public Safety Program will develop an Ahtna Safety and Wellness curriculum to be delivered in public schools. The Tribe will collaborate with relevant Copper River Native Association (CRNA) departments to ensure increased access for youth and their families, develop cultural programming for youth that supports prevention, and strengthen relations with Village Public Safety Officer and youth. The goal of the Ahtna Dené Public Safety Program is to implement a culturally aligned Tribal Youth Program in cooperation with the CRNA Youth Development Department to enhance efforts to create safer communities and empower youth to lead productive lives. Objectives include: in cooperation with the CRNA Youth Development Department, the Ahtna Dené Public Safety Program will support the implementation of Tribal Youth Programming, including prevention, intervention, and treatment activities, and the Ahtna Dené Public Safety Program will enhance collaboration between youth-serving agencies in the six villages of CRNA and CRNA Youth Services to implement culturally relevant prevention programming. The project’s outcomes are to reduce risk factors that lead to substance misuse or violence, increase protective factors in youth, enhance cultural identity in youth, increase the perception of safety among youth, and elevate youth voices in our communities.