2020 OFA Regions IX and X Virtual Tribal TANF Technical Assistance Meeting

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance (OFA) Regions IX and X held the OFA Regions IX and X Virtual Tribal TANF Technical Assistance Meeting: Building Capacity to Support Families in a New Reality on December 8-10, 2020. The meeting provided Tribal TANF and Native Employment Works (NEW) representatives an opportunity to attend sessions virtually and learn from the OFA Office of the Director, regional TANF officials, and experts about strategies they can use to build capacity and services despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics included ways programs are shifting to more virtual service provision and telework while considering and increasing digital inclusion; how to prepare program participants to find new or adapt existing training, employment, and career pathways opportunities; how to respond effectively to participants’ holistic needs and challenges; and strategies programs can use regarding trauma’s impact on individual, team, and organizational levels. In breakout sessions, tribal representatives shared strategies they are using to perform their work during the pandemic and serve program participants in their communities more successfully.