Tribal ECEAP During COVID-19

Washington Tribal Nations are comprised of strong communities rooted in family, culture, and tradition. Like others, the COVID-19 pandemic and Washington State’s Stay Home, Stay Healthy order had huge impacts on tribal communities. For tribes, this included interrupted community gatherings, cultural activities, religious practices, and early learning services. In the 2019-20 school year, 10 tribes in Washington provided Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) in their communities. Tribal ECEAP programming provided children and families with health services, family support, and education, along with other supports that meet the needs of each tribe such as culture and tribal language. Teaching young children traditional ways of life is an important part of building strong tribal communities. Read more about Spokane Tribe Children’s Center and Chief Leschi Schools ECEAP during COVID-19.

Strengthening Families

How are you coping? Challenges? Insights? Knowing your perspective gives county and state leaders valuable information to study and act on.

Join parents, volunteers, community agencies, schools, tribes, and DCYF to Strengthen Families Locally. This project hopes to increase family and community resilience and prevent child maltreatment and removal in four communities, including Bremerton, Port Angeles/Sequim, Spokane, and Stevens/Ferry.

Sharing a story on Sensemaker will take about 5-10 minutes, and you can share as often as you’d like.

Contribute your story at: http://ourtomorro.ws/WADCYF

Contact Erinn Havig, MSW, erinn.havig@dcyf.wa.gov, Primary & Community Prevention Lead, Strengthening Families WA, DCYF.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month: Order Your Pinwheels for Prevention

Please help us spread the word about Pinwheels for Prevention!

DCYF is observing April 2021 as Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) month by raising awareness in communities about child abuse and neglect prevention. As the Prevent Child Abuse Washington State Chapter, we encourage you to join the Pinwheels for Prevention initiative. This initiative uses pinwheels – a timeless symbol for childhood – to represent its campaign. 

Learn More Here

Celebrating Billy Frank Jr. Day Billy Frank Jr. Art by Jahla Brown, DCYF ESIT Stakeholder Engagement Specialist "We have to work with each other. Our earth is crying. And it's crying for help. In the everyday movement of our country, you can make a difference. You can make a difference." -Billy Frank Jr., 1931-2014

DCYF ESIT Tribal Program Consultant Brian Frisina provided the following information: Billy Frank Jr. played an instrumental role in the Fish Wars of the 1960s and 1970s, culminating in the landmark Boldt decision that affirmed tribal fishing rights. To celebrate Billy’s life, many have dedicated his birthday, March 9, as Billy Frank Jr. Day. A curriculum is in development for aiding teachers in educating others about the life and accomplishments of Billy Frank Jr. and how he fought for the salmon and the rights of treaty tribes. Source: The Billy Frank Jr. Day Curriculum, Salmon Defense, Olympia, WA. To receive more information, which includes lesson plans, videos, and presentations: Sign up for The Billy Frank Jr. Day Curriculum  Videos to watch, and for an overview: [YouTube] In his own words, watch: Billy Frank Jr. Interview [YouTube] A tribute to his legacy: Remembering Billy Frank Jr. [Accessible Handout] For an overview of Billy Frank Jr.'s legacy: Who was Billy Frank Jr.? [News Story]: Treaty Tribes Celebrate Billy Frank Jr. Day

Tribal Early Childhood Working Group: Summary Report and Blueprint for Action

In 2020, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) held a series of working group
meetings to better understand successes and challenges in providing early childhood services in tribal communities. Thank you to everyone who was able to participate, the personal outreach made a real impact on the composition of the working group.

ACF recognizes the value of parents as important partners in TEC systems, and they asked to hear parents perspectives on the coordination of the federal TEC programs and initiatives in their communities. You can read the full report on the input provided on how federal agencies could improve their coordination efforts to provide an ideal TEC system for children and their families.

Read the Full Report

Skokomish Healthy Families - Berry Picking for Grandparent's Day

Last summer, the Skokomish Healthy Families Program took a trip to Black River Blueberry Farm for Grandparent's Day. It was a terrific child-parent engagement and strengthening families support network.  As the different families talked amongst each other and shared stories, it helped facilitate growth and partnership between each other. The children were working on developing their first friends and learning about a longstanding tradition. Berry picking is something native people did for survival and is considered a traditional food.  As a group, they were able to identify strengths, resources, and challenges that mothers might encounter with things such as breastfeeding, going back to work after the baby was born, sleeping, being pregnant in the summer, babies transitioning into toddlerhood, what it's like to be a grandparent, and much more. All families were able to talk and communicate open and honestly in a way that supports culture, family dynamics, and personal experiences for all families. This is the kind of teaching you can't get in the classroom; everything was natural and not forced learning.  Cultural Foods in the CACFP CACFP issued a memorandum in 2015 clarifying that traditional foods may be served in child nutrition programs. The memorandum also includes examples of how several traditional foods may contribute to a reimbursable meal. The USDA did a series on community food systems in native communities, including this webinar on incorporating traditional foods into child nutrition programs. The National Farm to School Network hosted a webinar on indigenous foods in early care and education settings that includes inclusion of indigenous foods in CACFP.

Sierra Sage Treatment Center

The Sierra Sage Treatment Center campus is located on the Yerington Paiute Tribal Reservation to offer nationally accredited residential treatment for young women in a safe, supportive, and nurturing environment. Since 1984, Rite of Passage has been serving the needs of at-risk youth. The program is licensed by the Yerington Paiute Tribe and works closely with tribal representatives to ensure the services meet the needs of all our youth. Through specialized treatment, education, vocational training, and a normalized high school experience, young women are given the skills they need to overcome the effects of trafficking, abuse, neglect, trauma, substance abuse, mental illness, and violence so they can make healthy choices for themselves and their futures. Click on the link for more info: https://sierrasagetreatmentcenter.com/

Fatherhood is Sacred

Many programs focusing on strengthening families focus on the needs of women and children. Often, little attention is paid to the unique needs of men as they struggle to become valuable family participants. Society sometimes views men as the cause of many families and social programs, but Fatherhood is Sacred (FIS) takes the position that fathers are the solution and our greatest untapped resource in strengthening families.

Albert Pooley at the Native American Fatherhood & Families Association in Arizona has developed a model to support families called Fatherhood (and Motherhood) is Sacred (FIS). There are numerous tribal members and program staff trained to facilitate these groups but it is unclear how many and the current status of these programs.

A cross-cutting group of partners supported by the Washington Interagency Fatherhood Council would like your help in finding out more about this great work across our state to create strategies to better support and grow its presence. Can you assist them in seeking feedback from your tribe by having someone complete the below FIS survey so that they can gather this information?

They would greatly appreciate a survey response from each tribe. Please complete the survey by March 12.

Take the Survey

Creative Start Grants

The FY22 Creative Start grant program seeks to close the opportunity gap for early learners, preschool to 3rd grade. It supports:

• New and continuing arts integration projects.
• Creative, academic, and social emotional growth for young learners.
• Innovative professional growth for early learning educators.
• Single-site efforts serving one location or Regional efforts that support multiple sites.

Grants for Single-site projects are for $5,000-$10,000. Regional (Multi-site) grants are for $10,000-$25,000. No matching funds are required. Application open until April 8.

Learn More and Apply

Upcoming Meetings, Events, and Training Opportunities

• March 10, 11 a.m.: Exploring the Pandemic’s Impact on Families’ Well-Being.
  Learn more and register here.
• March 16, 11 a.m.: Early Childhood Investigations Consultant Directory is Sponsoring: The Roots of Anti-Asian Racism & Asian Allyship in Early Learning. Free.
• March 20, 10 a.m.: National Museum of the American Indian, Virtual Educator Professional Development. Teach-In: Traditional Foods Sustain our Bodies and Spirits Webinar. Register Here.
• March 22, 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.: Reframing Childhood Adversity: Promoting Upstream Approaches. More information and registration found here.
• March 25, 11:30 a.m.: Treehouse: Holiday Magic Listening Session. Join Zoom meeting. Meeting ID: 959 6835 7694. Passcode: 064594.
• April 15: Leaning into Culturally-Grounded Anti-Bias Child Assessment, by Iheoma Iruka. Register Now.
• May 21: Childhood Brain Injury: Best Practices in Return to School Virtual Conference. Learn more here.
• May 24, 26, and 28: Education for Parents of Indian Children with Special Needs. Learn more here.

Brazelton Touchpoints Center Learning to Listen Webinar Series

BTC’s Learning to Listen: Conversations for Change features luminaries across the family-facing fields exploring the current and emerging issues facing children and families today. Registration is free and live Spanish language translation is offered at all conversations. Register Here.

• Webinar 1: Wednesday, March 17, Noon. Disrupting Implicit Bias in Early Childhood Programs. Featuring Dr. Rosemarie Allen, President and CEO for the Institute for Racial Equity & Excellence.
• Webinar 2: Wednesday, April 28, Noon. Listening to Transgender Children, Transforming Ourselves. Featuring Debi Jackson, Founder of Gender Inc.
• Webinar 3: Wednesday, May 12, Noon. Uniting Worldviews to Advance Relationships in Indigenous Communities. Featuring Terry (Ha-ne-ga-noh) Cross, MSW, Senior Advisor to the National Indian Child Welfare Association.

UW Alliance for Child Welfare Excellence March Workforce Webinars

Tribal Workers, please use this Registration Form to register for the Alliance courses.

Contact Us