St. Paul Island tribe gets $1.73 million in federal grants for addiction treatment

The tribal government on St. Paul Island has about $1.73 million in new Justice Department grants to strengthen its healing court for members in Anchorage and the Mat-Su and to help families on the island affected by substance use.

The Aleut Community of St. Paul Island is the tribal government on St. Paul, a community of about 320 people in the middle of the Bering Sea. Most of its roughly 1,800 enrolled citizens live elsewhere, including about 1,200 in Anchorage and the Mat-Su, more than 700 miles away. The tribe runs its own healing to wellness court in both places.

In that court, tribal citizens with criminal cases and substance use disorders get treatment and recovery support while a judge supervises their progress. The larger grant, $999,999, is for the court's work in Anchorage and the Mat-Su. It covers drug and alcohol testing, overdose prevention education and help with transportation and sober housing, according to the federal award record. Southcentral Foundation is among the partners. The results the award record lists as expected include more access to treatment, more sober housing and fewer repeat offenses. The grant runs through September 2030.

The second grant, $730,000, is for a program on the island called Prevention and Intervention for Success. It's aimed at pregnant women and new mothers, parents, caregivers and young people affected by substance use. Staff would screen families, assess their needs at home, visit monthly and connect people with parenting education, outpatient treatment, recovery support and education and job programs, according to the award record. Members who live in Anchorage or the Mat-Su, or are staying there for a while, can get services there too. The grant runs through October 2029.

The Justice Department committed both grants in October. They add to a $137,161 federal health grant the court was awarded in September for treatment, aimed at 105 adults over five years.

In June, Anchorage city staff told an Assembly committee they were proposing a city grant for the tribe, which they called a new grantee, to offer housing help to members in Anchorage, including people in the wellness court.