Professor Receives Grant for Child Welfare Project

Jason Ostrander will work with the Cherokee sovereign nation to improve its children’s future

Jason Ostrander, an assistant professor of social work at Sacred Heart University, has received a grant of nearly $242,000 from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services through the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute at the University of Washington to work with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. The funding is part of a $2.2 million project to support the Cherokee Nation Gadugi (working together) Project, which aims to improve child welfare by investing in families. The grant will support the project through Sept. 29, 2026.

The Gadugi Project, a culturally centered and community-based initiative, is devoted to performing reputable work in child welfare, protection, and kinship care. With the grant, the project plans to build on cultural wisdom and community strengths to develop programs geared toward preserving the Cherokee heritage. The goal is to foster culture and create safe environments in which to do so. Additionally, four interventions will address the many barriers that prevent children and families from finding success, which includes a two-generation education program.

Ostrander works with Angelique Day, an associate professor from the University of Washington’s School of Social Work, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina. During the Trail of Tears―a period between 1838 and 1839, when President Andrew Jackson ordered Cherokees living east of the Mississippi River to give up their lands and move to Oklahoma―the Eastern Band was the only one that remained on its land. This is the last band in existence on the East Coast.

“The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians are at the forefront of indigenous child welfare programs. I am honored to be working on such a rewarding and groundbreaking project,” Ostrander said. “This project further supports a more comprehensive and culturally appropriate response to Cherokee family needs that involves the holistic tribal family community.”

This project is supported by the Children's Bureau (CB), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $475,000 with 100% funded by CB/ACF/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, CB/ACF/HHS or the U.S. Government. For more information, please see the Stevens Amendment.

Pictured: Professor Jason Ostrander