Building an Alaska Regional Partnership to Strengthen Families Affected by Substance Use - The From Review to Resilience Regional Partnership is a collaborative initiative led by Knik Tribe in partnership with Kenaitze Indian Tribe, Chickaloon Traditional Council, the Office of Children's Services (OCS), law enforcement agencies, healthcare providers, behavioral health organizations, schools, Child Advocacy Centers, and community partners to improve outcomes for children and families affected by parental or caregiver substance use. The project will serve the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and Kenai Peninsula Borough, a combined regional service area of approximately 180,000 residents, representing nearly one-quarter of Alaska's population. Building upon Knik Tribe's established Drug Endangered Children (DEC) Alliance and multidisciplinary response system, the project will expand a coordinated, family-centered model designed to increase child safety, strengthen family well-being, improve parental recovery, and reduce unnecessary out-of-home placements. Using the From Review to Resilience 5R Framework (Review, Respond, Recover, Rebuild, and Replicate), the Regional Partnership will coordinate referrals, multidisciplinary case staffing, Family Success Plans, evidence-informed treatment and recovery services, behavioral health supports, parenting education, child advocacy, cultural healing activities, and continuous quality improvement. The project has six primary objectives: Strengthen and expand the Regional Partnership through coordinated multidisciplinary collaboration and replication of the DEC Alliance model within the Kenai Peninsula. Increase timely identification and engagement of families affected by substance use through coordinated referrals, Family Advocates, and comprehensive Family Success Plans. Improve access to evidence-informed, family-centered services that promote recovery, parenting capacity, child well-being, and family functioning. Improve child welfare outcomes by reducing out-of-home placements, increasing reunification, improving permanency, and strengthening child safety. Implement a comprehensive performance evaluation and Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) system that measures implementation, outcomes, systems change, and contributes to the Regional Partnership Grant evidence base. Develop a sustainable and replicable Regional Partnership model that can be expanded throughout Alaska using standardized implementation tools, performance dashboards, evaluation findings, and technical assistance. Project outcomes include improved child safety, increased treatment engagement, stronger parenting capacity, improved family functioning, increased reunification, reduced foster care entry and re-entry, strengthened multidisciplinary collaboration, and expanded evidence supporting coordinated Regional Partnership models. Through rigorous evaluation, statewide dissemination, and long-term sustainability planning, the project will establish a scalable Tribal-led model that strengthens child welfare, behavioral health, and recovery systems while improving outcomes for Alaska's children and families.
