Relations
- Our team is coming together. We have been working across the state and maintaining collaborative efforts with our tribal nations and their departments. Through ESSA, tribal consultation is a mandatory component for many of our school districts in order to bring the resources and support efforts together to benefit our children to succeed. Working with state efforts, we have collaborated to be inclusive of our doctoral level traditional educators, our Elder and Cultural knowers. It is going well as we continue to provide tribal perspectives into educational conversations. Our youth are in need of support and guidance. The data shows there has been little improvement over the last few decades within our school districts. Self-identity is essential to success and it is one of our highest goals, essentially, getting our youth to be successful and to equip them to make decisions with their own best interests. This is a new direction that must be made - inclusion of our local traditional educators can provide students the self worth and pride needed to tackle issues, heal trauma and bring balance into the child's life. We are seeing these self identity efforts across the state, as language and culture is emphasized. We will do our part and continue to support where needed and called.
Resiliency
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As the SAMHSA Systems of Care Grant comes to a close, the work of supporting mental health and wellness in our schools continues. Several of the Tribal Wraparound Project Facilitators are being absorbed by the schools where they were based. The Systems of Care work assisted in establishing a foundation of stakeholders invested in working together to support mental wellness in several of our tribal communities. The outcomes range from assisting in the formation of crisis intervention teams, to providing motivational interviewing informed wraparound services for individual students and their extended support networks, to helping to form a statewide youth group, RiSE; Resiliency in Something Else and establishing mutual wellness goals with tribal communities. The SOC impact has helped to reduce stigma around mental health interventions and inform the partner schools' and their communities of becoming trauma-informed utilizing a restorative mindset and practicing talking circles.
In her new role as the School Mental health Support Services Coordinator, Crystal Hickman will partner with stakeholders state-wide to continue shaping the discussion of supporting mental wellness in our schools. She will be undertaking co-leadership of the Montana School Wellness Advisory Committee and looks forward to working with diverse partners to establish goals and work groups whose objective will be to further wellness outcomes for Montana students.
Language and Culture Specialist
Amba Washte! Good day everyone!
My name is Matt Bell and I am the new Language and Culture Specialist. I have been working with Donnie Wetzel and others in the IEFA department to organize and facilitate the language immersion grants in cooperation with the tribes. We will be featuring speakers and lessons in the upcoming IEFA Best Practices Conference as well as the Summer Institute. We have been listening and participating in discussions to help grow the capacity to include more language and culture specific curriculum within our schools. With this in mind, we bid you a happy arrival of Spring and would like to share a few words that coincide with the season. The following refer to the time of year known as March in English:
Dakáaka Annáakua (Crow) "birds go home". refers to the time when birds migrate
Onaabidin Giizis (Chippewa)(Oh-nah-bid-in) Snow Crust
K̓ʷsíxʷ Spq̓niʔ ( Séliš & Qlisp̓ é) (Bitterroot Salish & Upper Kalispel/Pend d’Oreille) Moon/Month of the Geese
Wicinstayazan(Nakoda) Sore Eye Moon
Ni-s-ki-pi-si-m Cree-March (Wild Goose Moon)
April:
Ammaaappúua (Crow) 1 flood 2 spring runoff
Tabehatawi (Nakoda) Frog’s Moon (when the croaking of frogs can be heard)
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