Adoption & Foster Care

Discussion based on the author's experience as the director of an urban Aboriginal service agency.

Social Work Thesis (M.S.W.)--The University of Manitoba, 1961.

Looks at the Mesnmimk Wasatek Report for influences affecting First Nations children in the Canadian child welfare system.

Results of qualitative survey conducted in response to amendments to the Youth Protection Act which gives courts the power to issue permanent placement orders outside of the immediate family.

Argues that individual cases occur within a particular historical and social context and that this has to be taken into account when evaluating specific cases.

Discusses the oppressive nature of child welfare systems as they relate to the criteria for "good" mothers imposed by dominant, Western cultural values.

Looks at major findings from study exploring the link between connectedness to family and community, ancestral knowledge, and health and adoption.

Human Ecology Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Alberta, 2005.

Comments on the Australian Government's 2008 Stolen Generations apology and notes where it has failed.

Looks at Aboriginal child rearing practices to determine if traditional ways are still in use and if so, how these practices differ from mainstream child rearing.

Looks at strengthening collaboration between state and county welfare agencies and communities.

Looks at the Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care Recommendations and efforts to address problems relating to children.

Reports on the oppressive policies employed by past and present Australian governments against Aboriginal peoples.

Comments on two studies that both considered two key questions: What are the barriers to successful adoptions and permanency planning for Indigenous youth living off reserve? How can we increase the number of successful, culturally respectful placements for urban Indigenous youth?

Discussion by Elders who express regrets at loss of traditional customs and values and desire a return of schools on reserves ; a need to preserve Indian ceremonies and Indian medicines ; concerns about problems with alcohol recur throughout.

Discusses information collected from interviews of Aboriginal patients living in Minnesota who had been raised outside of their biologic home.

Summarizes and assesses 13 Australian research studies grouped into four themes: measuring wellbeing, outcomes for children in care, service systems responses, and recruiting and supporting Indigenous caregivers

Provides practical information and cultural insights.

Social Work Thesis (MSW)--University of Victoria, 2014.

Overview of Northwest Inter-Nation Family and Community Services (NIFCS) who aim to meet the holistic needs of children and youth in their care by increasing cultural knowledge.

Judge who has served in Labrador and the Northwest Territories argues that identity issues are largely responsible for social problems.

Book reviews of: For Joshua: An Ojibway Father Teaches His Son by Richard Wagamese. The Setting Lake Sun by J. R. Lévillé. The Great Gift of Tears by Heather Hodgson.

Describes collaboration among a university, a state child welfare agency, and a Native American community organization to develop a culturally driven practice model for urban, Native American child welfare.

Social Work Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Toronto, 2003.

Research stresses the critical need for culturally appropriate care and the need for more research to better implement appropriate policies.

Looks at experiences of social workers in agencies providing guardianship and protective services to children and families within and outside Indigenous communities and reports how current funding arrangements affect availability of supports.

Compares newspaper coverage of the deaths of two Aboriginal children while in care. One was placed by provincial authorities, the other by the Xyolhemeylh agency of the Stó:lö Nation. Survey looked at stories in the National Post, Vancouver Sun, Province, Abbotsford Times, Chilliwack Times and Mission City Record.

Results from in-depth semi-structured interviews with 72 participants.

Report discusses how tribes can develop locally appropriate standards that best suit their own foster care needs.

Study focuses on resilience among 97 Canadian First Nations youth living in out-of-home care using criterion variables and predictor variables.

Clinical Psychology Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Ottawa, 2012.

Presents a short history of adoption in Canada and examines the impact of forced, external, and closed adoptions on Indigenous adoptees, families, and communities. Part 2.

Examines traditional and contemporary practices of custom adoption and caretaking. Part 1

Autobiographical sketch of Jesse Thistle, who overcame addiction and homelessness and obtained a post-secondary education.

Examines the structural factors behind disproportionality in the system and reviews approaches that go beyond traditional limits of social welfare systems.

English Literary Studies Thesis (M.A.)--Radboud University Nijmegen, 2017.

Donna Gamble speaks candidly as a mother and an outreach worker about her motivations and ongoing struggle with addiction. Duration: 50:35.

Reports the results of the Generation Indigenous (Gen-1) online survey of youth under the age of 25. The 700 respondents were asked questions about health and well-being, child welfare, juvenile justice, education and employment, sacred sites, lands, and waterways, and culture's role in each of those areas.

Examines how Aboriginal parenting traditions have been undermined by boarding schools, urban relocation and foster care.

Rehabilitation Sciences Thesis (Ph.D.)--The University of British Columbia (Vancouver), 2015.

Includes information on online training courses, experiential learning, websites, videos and podcasts, and a set of fact sheets on pertinent topics along with related online supplemental readings.

Looks at the diagnostic descriptions for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), outlines the needs of a person with FAS across a life span, discusses how these needs are met in rural Alaska, and describes what Alaska and other remote communities still need to help people with FAS.

Overview of special issue on the Indigenous Child Removal System in Canada.

Introductory editorial article on themed issue focusing on Australia and New Zealand.

Introductory article to issue states that in spite of the diversity of topics the articles are connected by common themes and conclusions.

Introduction to the articles in themed issue.

Articles in this themed issue revisit the origins of the Touchstones of Hope and look at what has been accomplished in the past ten years.