Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 39, Number 5, 1 May 2022 — New Cultural Training Seeks to Improve Outcomes for Child Welfare Cases [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

New Cultural Training Seeks to Improve Outcomes for Child Welfare Cases

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NA KAMA a HALOA By Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi

The statistics are alarming: In 2021, some 2,500 children, infants to age 18, were in Hawai'i's foster care system. More than 44% of them were of Native Hawaiian ancestry. Nā Kāma a Hāloa aims to change that. This eommu-nity-based network was formed in September 2018 "to weave Native Hawaiian wisdom and perspective into the Hawai'i foster care system." Partners include more than 15 agencies and organizations that work in child welfare and/or serve the Native Hawaiian population, including the Oflice of Hawaiian Affairs, Kamehameha Schools, Lili'uokalani Trust, and Child Welfare Services (CWS). Native Hawaiian foster parents and birth parents and youths with lived experience in child welfare also eontribute their valuable insights.

The knowledge that child welfare workers, foster parents and families receiving services have about Native Hawaiian 'ike, history and cultural values varies greatly. Hui Kauhale, one of Nā Kāma a Hāloa's five eommittees, develops programs that increase their understanding, so better outcomes ean be achieved. Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the Victoria S. and Bradley L. Geist Foundation are among the organizations that have funded Hui Kauhale's projects, one of the most recent being a four-hour module for CWS' core

training program. Development of "Understanding Cultural Diversity, Inclusion & Equity: A Native Hawaiian Perspective" began two years ago. It is geared to newly hired CWS staff members (from entry level to senior administrators) and new hires for CWS' contracted providers, among them Catholic Charities, Child & Family Services, and Parents & Children Together. "It's a sad fact that Native Hawaiians are disproportionately represented in the loeal child welfare system," said Venus Rosete-Medeiros, chief executive ofHcer of Hale Kipa (a Nā Kāma a Hāloa partner) and a member of Hui Kauhale. "Our committee thought that if child welfare workers have a solid background in Hawaiian history, culture and perspectives, they could be more effective

at their jobs. It's human nature for people to approach situations with pre-conceived ideas, and that impacts the way they relate to others. After completing the training, we hope participants will be able to set aside their biases and assumptions and be better prepared to help the families we serve." Rosete-Medeiros; Ekela Kaniaupio-Cozier, Hawaiian culture-based education coordinator at Kamehameha Schools Maui; and Noe Realin, quality assurance advisor for Lili'uokalani Trust, played key roles in creating the content. The first session, held via Zoom on March 24 with a cohort of 13, included a film, a PowerPoint presentation and facilitated discussions. One component of the training_focuses on the story of kalo and Hāloa, the first Kanaka 'Ōiwi. Kalo is revered as Kānaka 'Ōiwi's life-sustaining ancestor. It also symbolizes 'ohana. 'Ohā, the buds of the corm, are replanted in the lo'i to yield new crops of kalo just as new generations of 'ohana thrive when they have strong roots and are properly tended. "Kalo is a metaphor for keiki and 'ohana," Rosete-Me-deiros said. "Every part of the kalo has purpose and value, just as every member of the 'ohana does. The lo'i kalo is a metaphor for the child welfare system and the role it plays in supporting families. Kalo needs the rich soil and elean, flowing water in the lo'i to grow strong and healthy. Agencies working alongside Child Welfare Services provide parenting classes, mental heahh counseling, substance use treatment, employment and housing assistance and other vital resources for families to grow strong and healthy." Auwai carry fresh water to the lo'i kalo; an auē situation results when they heeome clogged or stagnant. Similarly, problems arise when efforts and effective eommunication in the child welfare system are blocked. "When kalo is being cultivated, all of the workers are responsible for taking care of the 'auwai, so elean, fresh water constantly flows into the lo'i, ensuring bountiful

harvests," Rosete-Medeiros said. "It is the same for those of us who work in child welfare. We have a kuleana to do our part, to work together to ensure that programs and services for our keiki, opio and 'ohana run smoothly. That support is delivered in many ways by many people, and everyone's kūlana is important." Understanding fundamental Hawaiian values — aloha, 'ohana, mālama, laulima, lōkahi and pu'uhonua — is another pillar of the training. All are rooted in Hawaiian history and tradition. For example, Rosete-Medeiros points out how pu'uhonua were refuges for injured warriors in ancient times. The warriors were treated there by kāhuna lapa'au until they were able to return home or to the battlefield. Pu'uhonua were also sanctuaries for those who broke a kapu. When they completed the required rituals, they could return to society, their transgressions forgiven. "We ean help mākua be their children's pu'uhonua," Rosete-Medeiros said. "We ean help them create a home environment that provides the love, acceptance, emotional support and guidance that keiki need to heeome healthy, confident and successful adults. It's important that the 'ohana we serve have a pu'uhonua, a plaee where they feel safe, happy, comfortable and nurtured." Child welfare workers ean also be a pu'uhonua by being kind, encouraging, respectful and receptive rather than punitive, negative, discriminatory and judgmental. "Vulnerable individuals most likely have experienced some sort of trauma in their lives," Rosete-Medeiros says. "It's important to understand the effects trauma has on behavior and to have the skills, empathy and knowledge to devise a service plan that will promote healing. That saying is so true: People don't care how mueh you know until they know how mueh you care." ■ Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi has written 12 books and countless newspaper, magazine and website articles about Hawai'i's history, culture,food and lifestyle.

Hūle Kipa Chief Executive Officer Venus Kau'iokawēkiu Rosete-Medeiros. - Photo: Aubrey Hord