ICWA & WICWA Training
Description:
The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and Washington Indian Child Welfare Act (WICWA) Overview for CASAs Training will feature an hour-long presentation on the historical and current importance of ICWA and WICWA for Native children. We will also cover the different roles the DCYF caseworker and CASAs play in supporting ICWA practice with a deeper look at DCYF caseworker's responsibilities related to active efforts, Tribal collaboration and following WICWA and ICWA placement preferences. CASAs will also learn how they can best support ICWA in their roles when working with Native children and youth involved in the state child welfare system.
Our training will end with a half-hour, facilitated conversation with Stacy Williams. Stacy is an enrolled member of the Kickapoo Tribe of Kansas. She brings extensive knowledge and experience from her professional work as a CASA and GAL in both Washington state and Oregon, and will be answering selected questions from the CASA participants.
**If you have questions on how to advocate for the best interests of native children or for the guest presenters, please send questions to wai-ping.li-landis@kingcounty.gov by 3/9/2026.**
Stacy Williams:
As an enrolled member of the Kickapoo tribe of Kansas, Stacy recognizes the importance of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) that sets minimum Federal standards for child custody cases involving Native children, prioritizing their best interests, and strengthening family and tribal stability.
Through her work as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) and Guardian ad Litem (GAL), Stacy has been a strong advocate for Indigenous children, families, and tribes, both in court and through training initiatives. She applies ICWA’s active efforts approach to case management, emphasizing reunification priorities and cultural integration.
Stacy is an active member of the Local Indian Child Welfare Advisory Committee, serving multiple regions across Washington State. To strengthen knowledge and support for ICWA implementation, she developed and continues to provide training and case consultation for CASAs and GALs in both Washington and Oregon.
In collaboration with Oregon tribes, the Oregon Judicial Department, and the Oregon CASA Network, she helped create an online ICWA resource and training module for all CASAs and caseworkers across Oregon. Additionally, to promote judicial awareness, she contributed to expanding a statewide family court study focused on judicial compliance with ICWA.
She holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Washington and a Masters degree in Conflict Resolution from Pepperdine University. To honor her native grandmothers, she follows the ceremonies of her ancestors and grows medicinal plants in her garden.
Gabriela Saenz:
Gabriela Saenz, Mexican American, Lipan Apache, Purépecha Descendant is the Tribal Laision/ICWA Consultant for Region 4 (Seattle/King County). She has a background in tribal CPS, and clinical social work, specializing in PTSD, grief, and death work. Her role as the tribal liaison is to serve as a bridge between tribes and DCYF doing government to government work and relationship building. As the ICWA Consultant, she supports social workers supporting native families, help them understand the spirit of ICWA, and to ensure they are following policy and providing active efforts.
Rachel Mason:
Rachel provides expert consultation and advice to DCYF staff, creates training information regarding tribal relations, looks at training needs for both Tribal staff and DCYF staff. She plans, develops, implements, and provides and monitors all statewide training activities for staff, and looks at aspects of program management statewide to include contract management and monitoring and doing evaluations.
