A Different Approach to Tribal Youth Education

A Different Approach (ADA) utilizes that ABC's of effective community organizing to foster resiliency in communities that are experiencing economic marginalization.   The community of McNary Arizona has not recovered in the decades since the loss of the primary economic activity in the region.  The loss of the foresty enterprise to changes in technology and the market has many families with decades of unemployment.

ADA is about addressing fundamental problems through organizing and developing community-based assets.   A core component is addressing the community narrative concerning life strategies and possibilities.   In social science, expectancy theory demonstrates that communities behavior is influenced by past experiences and may create the phenomena of self-fulfilling negative prophacies.  Fueling a sense of hopelessness that is compounded by the loss of confidence to control the circumstances of life. 

The mission of ADA is two-fold.  One is to assist young people trapped in economic conditions of limited opportunity to develop the acumen, habits, and vision to respond to challenges with resilience and to foster the development of human capital realize activities that improve the quality of life of a community.  Most importantly, to engage in simple programming to scale to demonstrate that success is possible.   In this way, the project's envisioned are a means to a complex end that is greater than the short term scope of the endeavor. 

An example of this is the organizing around a short term camp for the elementary aged children of the community of McNary.   While the camp will focus on basic life skills and healthy living, the camp also serves as a practical educational exercise for the teenage participants in the program.   The greater objectives are that the youth have a specific and tangible project to implement the skills they are learning in the mentoring program.   Additionally, the younger kids in the community identity with members of their own community as being engaged in leadership.   The model is that by being put into the role of mentor, the older youth internalize the role and grow in responsibility and confidence outside of the program scope. 

To this end, the following programming activities occurred in April and will continue through the implementation of camp in June. 

Camp Planning Meetings

- In April there were three workshops with the four junior Coordinators on camp programming and planning. 
- The junior coordinators finalized the camp activities and schedule.  They also created the donation request letter and compiled a list of local organizations and business from which to solicit donations.

Mentorship Opportunities & Relationship Building
- the Junior Coordinators and program director have begun to develop relationships outside of planning for the McMary summer camp.
- two Coordinators asked for a reference for summer employment opportunities
- one asked for the coordinator to be listed as a mentor for her national honor society service project 
- 3 invited coordinator to attend their high school powderpuff football game 
- 3 have invited coordinator to their high school graduation ceremony and dinner/party (1 is still a junior)

The request for the program's adult mentors to be involved with activities outside of the program is more than an indicator of program success, it also demonstrates the core aspect of program methodology which building community around engagement and success.  

We look forward to sharing details about the results of the camp next quarter. 

The program director for A Different Approach has been organizing to create a dynamic network across different demographic groups for an asset-based community development project to reach elementary and middle school age tribal youth in the community of McNary Arizona.    The project's objective is to mentor High School age youth to model positive living and planning skills for their pre-adolescent peers. 

Over the last two months, staff at Blue Ridge Highschool have been consulted to secure meeting space, support, and resources for outreach to tribal youth to provide relevant guidance services from tribal community elders.  Blue Ridge is a public school with a predominantly Anglo American population being tracked for college admission and academic success.  There is no tribal staff in the high school with the cultural or sociological understanding of the tribal community context.

The project aims to provide mentoring services to the tribal adolescent population attending the public school through a structure of training them to be peer mentors for junior community members.   A key aspect of the program is the development by the students of micro-community projects to resolve problems or take advantage of opportunities that they self identify utilizing community-based assets.  

A second innovative feature of the program is the development of collaboration and partnerships with non-tribal groups from Pheonix, Santa Fe, and Washington DC.   The design is to simultaneously assist tribal youth with communication skills for collaboration with the dominant society as well as challenge prejudices and ignorance towards tribal communities through a process of servant leadership. 

The Spring program will culminate in a week-long youth camp and service week in June 2019.   We invite donors and individuals seeking partnerships with innovative tribal programs to join us in the White Mountains of Arizona for a week of transformation.