Tiwahe Expansion Application

The TIWAHE Initiative and Demonstration Project was appropriated funding for the first time in 2014. In 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) provided across the board increases for the ICWA and Social Services funding for all eligible Tribes and invited four Tribes to participate in the TIWAHE demonstration project. Two more Tribes were added in 2017. In 2022, an additional $2 million was appropriated by Congress to expand the demonstration project which resulted in an additional 2 Tribes selected and 10 Tribes receiving $100,000 in one-time funding.

On May 23, 2023, the Department of Interior Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs through a Dear Tribal Leaders Letter that there is an opportunity for Tribes across the Nation to submit a Letter of Intent to be considered for inclusion in the TIWAHE Initiative Demonstration Project.  BIA will be adding two new demonstration sites. Federally recognized Tribes, Tribal Organizations or Tribal Consortia are eligible to apply. The application is due at 7:59pm AKST, August 31, 2023 to Meghan Bishop at meghan.bishop@bia.gov.

 

Application Components include:

1. Face sheet – required with all letters of intent. This provides necessary background information for BIA and reviewers and is a one-page, fillable form.
2. Letter of Intent addressing the following:
   1. Background of the Tribe
   2. Description of the issues that the Tribe would use TIWAHE funding to address – including Tribal priorities.
   3. Description of how TIWAHE funding would be used to address the identified issues. What are the Tribes proposed outcomes? How would TIWAHE funding shape the future for the Tribe’s community and families?
   4. Current demographics of the Tribe’s members and those serviced or in need of service.
   5. Evidence of support of Tribal leadership and Tribal members and the ability to communicate effectively between them.
   6. Current partnerships among local, Tribal, State and federal providers to improve access to services for Tribal children, youth, and families.
   7. Overall Vision Statement
   8. Current social indicators in priority areas identified by the Tribe.
   9. What are the Tribe’s gaps in delivering services or having capacity to assist Tribal members?
   10. How do the priorities and the needs of the Tribe align with TIWAHE funding lines and the outcomes framework?
   11. Proposed outcomes and how those outcomes align with Tiwahe funding lines and the Outcomes Framework.
       1. Willingness to implement infrastructure to support Tiwahe, including allocating human capital and complementing technology, given tribal context and resource availability.
       2. Willingness to challenge existing thinking and thought to traditional and cultural family well-being outcomes.

• Willingness to “break down silos that exist between programs and activities…”

1. Willingness to transform programs and activities “…in such a way that they help and enhance one another.”

 

Additional considerations for selection may include Tribal leadership interest, community support for change, and the willingness for the Tribe to be an active partner in the Tiwahe Initiative.

• Dear Tribal Leader Letter and Accompanying Documents

• https://www.bia.gov/events/tiwahe-initiative-demonstration-project-webinar

 

• Tiwahe Congressional Report and Appendices
• https://www.bia.gov/ois/tiwahe

 

• Tiwahe Evaluation
• https://www.fhi360.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/resource-tiwahe-family-community-tribal-services-report.pdf

Face Sheet for Tiwahe Expansion Application

 

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For additional information, please contact AVCP Communications Director, Gage Hoffman at 907-543-7308 or email at ghoffman@avcp.org
AVCP is a regional nonprofit tribal consortium comprised of the 56 federally recognized tribes of the YK Delta. The geographic boundaries of AVCP extend from the Yukon River Village of Russian Mission downstream to the Bering Sea coast, north up through Kotlik and south along the coastline to Platinum and then extending up the Kuskokwim River to Stony River, including Lime Village on the Stony River tributary. The area encompasses approximately 6.5 million acres, or 55,000 square miles, in Western Alaska.