[00:00:03]
[1. CONVENE]
MUCH BETTER. OKAY.TONIGHT, WE GATHER TO DISCUSS OUR SHARED COMMITMENT TO FOSTER ACADEMIC GROWTH THROUGH PROVIDING MEANINGFUL AND EFFECTIVE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR NATIVE STUDENTS IN THE FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT UNDER THE ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT.
WE ARE GUIDED BY THE PRINCIPLE THAT TRIBAL CONSULTATION SHOULD BE BOTH TIMELY AND MEANINGFUL.
THIS MEANS CREATING AN ONGOING DIALOG THAT RESPECTS TRIBAL SOVEREIGNTY, CULTURAL DIFFERENCES, AND THE SHARED RESPONSIBILITY WE HAVE IN SUPPORTING THE SUCCESS OF NATIVE STUDENTS. OUR AIM IS TO ENSURE THAT NATIVE VOICES ARE INTEGRAL TO THE PLANNING, IMPLEMENTATION, AND EVALUATION OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS. IT IS A TIME FOR US TO CELEBRATE OUR SUCCESSES AND EVALUATE THE AREAS WHERE WE NEED TO GROW.
TO ACHIEVE THIS, WE ARE COMMITTED TO FOSTERING COLLABORATION BY LEARNING MORE ABOUT TRIBAL PRIORITIES, INCORPORATING CULTURAL KNOWLEDGE INTO OUR PLANS, AND REGULARLY COMMUNICATING PROGRESS.
WE UNDERSTAND THE HISTORICAL COMPLEXITIES AND CHALLENGES THAT INFORM THE CURRENT CONTEXT OF NATIVE EDUCATION, AND WE APPROACH THIS WORK WITH HUMILITY, RESPECT, AND A COMMITMENT TO MAKE A POSITIVE DIFFERENCE.
BEFORE WE START, A COUPLE OF HOUSEKEEPING MATTERS.
THE OTHER THING THAT JUST FOR THOSE THAT AREN'T FAMILIAR, IF YOU DO WANT TO SPEAK THE MICROPHONES THE CLOSER YOU ARE TO THEM, THE BETTER THEY LIKE IT. AND THERE'S AN ON AND OFF SWITCH RIGHT AT THE BASE OF THEM.
SO WITH THAT, WE WILL MOVE AHEAD WITH OUR MEETING.
AND THE FIRST ITEM IS ADOPTING THE AGENDA.
SO AT THIS TIME, THE CHAIR WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ADOPT THE AGENDA THAT'S BEEN PRESENTED TO US.
I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO ADOPT THE AGENDA AS PRESENTED.
OKAY. SO IT HAS BEEN MOVED THAT WE ADOPT THE AGENDA AS PRESENTED.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
AYE. OPPOSED? GREAT. THEN OUR AGENDA HAS BEEN ADOPTED AND WE CAN MOVE FORWARD.
[2. FOCUS ON STUDENT RESULTS]
SINCE MANY OF US MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW EACH OTHER, IS I'D LIKE TO JUST GO AROUND THE TABLE AND INTRODUCE OURSELVES.AND I'LL START, IF I CAN, WITH NANCY, AND THEN WE'LL JUST GO AROUND.
HI, I'M PEGGY UPPIANO AND I AM A DIRECTOR WITH THE FERNDALE SCHOOL BOARD.
HI, I'M BRANDI WHITNEY, I'M THE NATIVE LIAISON AT HORIZON MIDDLE SCHOOL.
I'M RACHEL INSON, I'M AT THE VISTA AND NICE TO SEE YOU ALL AGAIN.
JENSEN. I'M A MEMBER OF VILLAGE FIRST NATIONS FROM THE GLADSTONE NARDI FAMILY.
PRINCIPAL NOW AT VISTA MIDDLE SCHOOL.
AND THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME ON YOUR LANDS FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS.
[INAUDIBLE] MY NAME IS SMAKIYA.
I TEACH LUMMI LANGUAGE AT FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL.
I ALSO TEACH THE OXALA CLASS, WHICH IS NATIVE AMERICAN LEADERSHIP.
I WORK AT FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL AS A NATIVE AMERICAN LIAISON.
I AM A FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL ALUMNI CLASS OF 2002, AND I AM A PROUD MEMBER OF THE LUMMI NATION.
I WORK WITH DATA AND ASSESSMENT FOR THE DISTRICT.
[00:05:01]
MY NAME IS ADELITA.I'M AN ELDER OF THE LUMMI NATION AS WELL AS ON THE LUMMI NATION SCHOOL BOARD.
A GRADUATE IN 1968 FROM FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL.
SO I'VE BEEN HERE, DONE THAT, BEEN A PART OF THIS COMMUNITY FOR MANY YEARS, RAISED CHILDREN.
MY CHILDREN NOW ARE ATTENDING LUMMI NATION SCHOOL.
HE'S ONLY IN. HE'S ONLY A SOPHOMORE, SO I GOT A WHILE.
I'M JUANITA JEFFERSON, LUMMI ELDER.
I'M ON THE LUMMI EDUCATION BOARD, PLUS MANY OTHER COMMITTEES AND BOARDS.
SO MY INVESTMENT IN THIS SCHOOL HAS BEEN 50 YEARS, OVER 50 YEARS.
AND SO A LOT OF WORK HAS GONE ON AHEAD OF ME.
AND I HAD A HEAD OF ALL OF US.
BUT OUR CONCERN IS ALWAYS FOR ALL THE CHILDREN.
ALL THE CHILDREN HAVE THE RIGHT TO AN EXCELLENT EDUCATION, NO MATTER WHAT COLOR THEY ARE.
ALL THE CHILDREN NEED TO BE TREATED FAIR.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL THAT YOU DO.
MY ENGLISH NAME IS KYRA LEE LANE.
I AM THE EDUCATION HR MANAGER AND I AM HERE FILLING IN FOR KENDRA JEFFERSON TONIGHT.
I'M JUST GOING TO BE TAKING NOTES FOR OUR BOARD.
[INAUDIBLE] MY TRADITIONAL NAME IS QUIZQUIZ AND I'M FROM LUMMI AND CURRENTLY THE POLICY ANALYST FOR THE EDUCATION DIVISION.
STEVE CHILDS, FERNDALE SCHOOL BOARD.
I'M THE SENIOR STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE TO THE BOARD.
ANTONIO MACHADO, FERNDALE SCHOOL BOARD DIRECTOR.
WELCOME. GOOD EVENING, AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING.
KRISTI DOMINGUEZ SUPERINTENDENT.
AND I'M KEVIN ERICKSON FERNDALE SCHOOL BOARD, AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.
AND WITH THE INTRODUCTIONS DONE, I'D LIKE TO GO AHEAD AND TURN IT OVER TO CHRISTY AND HER TEAM TO SHARE WITH US ABOUT THE NATIVE STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS AND PARTICIPATION IN FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT PROGRAMS, AND HOW IMPACT AID IS BEING USED.
OUR GOAL TONIGHT IS TO ONE PRESENT THE JOINT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES, BUT ALSO TO LOOK AT THE DATA OF WHAT IS CURRENTLY HAPPENING. BOBBY OLSEN WILL BE SHARING THAT.
BUT THERE'S ANOTHER TYPE OF DATA THAT WE OFTEN FORGET, AND THAT'S THE STORY.
THEY ARE STRONG ADVOCATES AND THEY ARE MAKING THINGS HAPPEN FOR OUR KIDS.
AND IT IS A TRUE HONOR TO WORK ALONGSIDE THEM.
SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO YOU, BOBBY.
THOSE WOULD BE GRADUATION RATES, ATTENDANCE ASSESSMENT RESULTS, AND PARTICIPATION IN HIGH SCHOOL CLASSES AND PROGRAMS. SO TO START, I JUST WANTED TO GIVE A LITTLE CONTEXT AROUND HOW THE STATE COLLECTS AND REPORTS ON RACE DATA FOR FEDERAL RACE CODES. JUST SO THAT WE KNOW WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
SO CURRENTLY IN WASHINGTON STATE, OSPI REPORTS ON RACE INFORMATION FOLLOWING THE FEDERAL GUIDELINES.
[00:10:07]
AND THIS IS A PRACTICE WHERE ONE STUDENT CAN IDENTIFY AS ONLY ONE RACIAL OR ETHNIC GROUP.THERE IS ANOTHER MODEL, WHICH I THINK I MAY HAVE SHARED WITH YOU LAST, LAST YEAR.
AND HERE IN FERNDALE, WE'VE BEEN USING THE MAXIMUM REPRESENTATION MODEL FOR THE LAST YEAR, AND THAT IS WHERE ONE UNIQUE STUDENT CAN REPRESENT MORE THAN ONE RACIAL OR ETHNIC GROUP.
SO JUST TO EXPLAIN HOW THAT WORKS.
WHEN A STUDENT OR A FAMILY ENTERS THE FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT, THEY ARE ASKED TO PROVIDE INFORMATION LIKE WHAT ETHNICITY OR RACE THEY IDENTIFY WITH.
THIS INFORMATION IS THEN GIVEN TO THE STATE AND THEN REPORTED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
BUT THE QUESTIONS THAT THEY ASK ARE.
ARE YOU HISPANIC? YES OR NO? AND THEN SELECT ONE OR ALL THAT APPLY FOR THE RACE CATEGORIES.
SO IF WE HAD A STUDENT THAT CAME INTO FERNDALE AND THEY IDENTIFIED AS HISPANIC, AND THEY ALSO IDENTIFIED AS AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE AND WHITE, BY THE MAXIMUM REPRESENTATION MODEL, THEY WOULD BE COUNTED IN EACH OF THE CATEGORIES THAT THEY CHOSE TO IDENTIFY WITH.
HOWEVER, IN THE CURRENT SYSTEM FOR OSPI, THAT STUDENT HAS TO FIT INTO JUST ONE CATEGORY.
SO THE RACE INFORMATION IS THEN SUPPRESSED.
IF A STUDENT COMES INTO FERNDALE AND THEY ARE NOT HISPANIC, BUT THEY HAVE AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE CHECKED AS WELL AS WHITE. MAXIMUM REPRESENTATION WOULD ACKNOWLEDGE BOTH AND RECOGNIZE BOTH RACE CATEGORIES THAT THEY SELECTED.
THE OSPI SYSTEM WOULD HAVE TO HAVE THAT STUDENT INTO ONE CATEGORY.
AND SO AGAIN, THIS RACE INFORMATION WOULD BE SUPPRESSED.
IT IS ONLY WHEN A STUDENT COMES IN THAT IS NO TO HISPANIC AND YES TO A SINGLE RACE THAT THEY ARE RECOGNIZED FOR THAT ONE RACE IN THIS CASE AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE.
AND THIS WOULD ALSO BE THE CASE IN MAXIMUM REPRESENTATION FOR THIS STUDENT.
SO KNOWING THAT WE'LL LOOK AT THE NUMBERS HERE IN FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
THE STUDENTS THAT ARE NO TO HISPANIC AND YES TO JUST ONE RACE, AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE.
WE ALSO HAVE STUDENTS THAT ARE AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE, PLUS AT LEAST ONE OTHER RACE.
AND WE HAVE STUDENTS THAT ARE AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE, PLUS HISPANIC.
SO ALTOGETHER, WE INSTEAD OF HAVING IN THE THREE HUNDREDS OF THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS IN FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT WHO ARE NATIVE AMERICAN, WE HAVE 646 STUDENTS THAT IDENTIFY AS NATIVE AMERICAN IN SOME WAY.
SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THE TOTAL POPULATION IN THE FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT, ABOUT 13% OF OUR STUDENTS IDENTIFY IN SOME WAY AS NATIVE AMERICAN, WHICH MEANS THAT THERE ARE 87% THAT IDENTIFY AS NOT AMERICAN INDIAN OR ALASKA NATIVE.
FIRST WE'LL START WITH GRADUATION.
THIS IS KIND OF THE END OF THE ROAD FOR STUDENTS IN THE FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
SO THIS IS KIND OF WHERE WE WANTED TO START.
THIS GOES BACK ALL THE WAY TO 2018 AND UP TO 2023.
THE THESE ARE THE GRADUATION RATES.
THE FOUR YEAR GRADUATION RATES FOR THE BLUE DOTS REPRESENT AMERICAN INDIAN, ALASKA NATIVE, AND THE ORANGE DOTS WOULD BE NON NATIVE AMERICAN.
AND SO YOU CAN SEE THAT EVEN THOUGH THE RATES FOR AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE HAVE BEEN LOWER HISTORICALLY THAN THE NON NATIVE OUR MOST RECENT DATA SET SHOWS THAT THAT GAP IS STARTING TO CLOSE.
THE INFORMATION FOR THE 2024 GRADUATION DATA THAT WILL BE COMING OUT IN JANUARY.
AND WE CAN SHARE IT WITH YOU THEN.
IN ADDITION TO THE GRADUATION DATA THAT WE REPORT TO THE STATE, WE'RE ALSO TRYING TO CAPTURE
[00:15:05]
STUDENTS THAT MAY NEED EXTRA HELP AND SUPPORT EARLIER THAN 12TH GRADE.SO RECENTLY, WE JUST HAVE BEEN CREATING SYSTEMS TO TRY TO TRACK GRADUATION PROGRESS OR ON TRACK TOWARDS GRADUATION AND TRACKING THOSE BY, BY RACE.
AND WE CAN ALSO TRACK IT BY OTHER FACTORS AS WELL.
YOU'LL NOTICE THAT NINTH GRADE 100% OF STUDENTS ARE ON TRACK.
THAT IS BECAUSE IT IS FIRST SEMESTER.
THESE ARE TAKEN FROM THE SEMESTER GRADES.
SO CURRENTLY NO NINTH GRADERS HAVE ANY HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT.
AND THEN WE'LL UPDATE THIS AFTER THE SEMESTER BREAK AS WELL.
THAT'S FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS, MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE.
AND THEN THE RESULTS THAT WE GET FROM THESE ASSESSMENTS THIS CHART THAT WE'LL SHOW HERE IS LOOKING AT FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT AS A WHOLE AND HOW THEY COMPARE TO ALL DISTRICTS IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON.
WE WERE LOOKING AT ON THE LEFT SIDE, THE Y AXIS IS LOOKING AT TEST PERFORMANCE.
SO THE PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS THAT ARE PROFICIENT ON A TEST.
SO THE LOWER THE PERCENTAGE IS DOWN LOW, AND THEN THE HIGHER UP YOU GO, THE BETTER THE RESULTS.
AGAIN, TO THE LEFT IS THE LOWER OR FEWER LOW INCOME.
AND TO THE TO THE RIGHT IS MORE LOW INCOME.
BUT YOU CAN KIND OF SEE A TREND WHEN WE RUN A TREND LINE, YOU CAN SEE THIS DASHED LINE ACROSS IS THE AVERAGE LEVEL OF THE TEST PERFORMANCE BY LOW INCOME PERCENTAGE. THE GOAL IS TO BE ABOVE THAT LINE.
WE CAN SEE THE STATE AVERAGE IS THE ORANGE DOT.
AND FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT IS REPRESENTED BY THE BLUE DOT.
WE'RE JUST BELOW THE LINE FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS, BUT PRETTY CLOSE.
THERE ARE MULTIPLE DISTRICTS IN THE STATE THAT ARE IN CONSULTATION WITH TRIBES.
AND SOME OF THE INFORMATION WE CAN GATHER FROM THIS IS WE CAN SEE WHICH DISTRICTS HAVE HIGHER PERFORMANCE THAN OTHERS THAT ARE CONSULTING WITH OTHER TRIBES. AND WE CAN LOOK TO THOSE DISTRICTS AND TRY TO REACH OUT AND FIND WHAT STRATEGIES THEY'VE EMPLOYED.
SO THIS IS FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS.
WHEN WE LOOK AT MATHEMATICS THE RESULTS ARE PRETTY SIMILAR ALL ACROSS THE STATE.
THE RESULTS ARE A LITTLE LOWER, BUT FERNDALE IS RIGHT NEAR THE LINE AGAIN.
SUBJECTS. WHEN WE BREAK IT DOWN BY RACE FOR THE STUDENTS IN FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT SPECIFICALLY, WE'RE LOOKING AT THE DOTS ON THE LEFT ARE SPRING OF 2023 AND THE POINTS ON THE RIGHT ARE 2024.
AND SO WE'RE LOOKING FOR CHANGE OVER TIME.
AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE STUDENTS ARE REPRESENTED BY THE BLUE DOTS IN LINE.
AND NON-AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE ARE REPRESENTED BY THE ORANGE ONE ABOVE.
OUR AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE STUDENTS SAW A VERY LARGE GROWTH.
NEXT, WE'LL LOOK AT ATTENDANCE.
BEFORE WE GET INTO ATTENDANCE, I JUST WANTED TO LINK IT TO ATTENDANCE AND ASSESSMENT.
SO THIS IS JUST A CHART SHOWING WHAT WE'D SEEN IN THE PRIOR SLIDES.
[00:20:01]
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS IS THE TOP LINE.AND THIS IS THE DISTRICT AS AN OVERALL.
AND THEN SAME FOR OR MATH WAS 34.6.
BUT WHEN WE LOOKED AT ATTENDANCE, THE STATE OF WASHINGTON USES AN ATTENDANCE RATE OF 90% OR HIGHER AS A THRESHOLD FOR CONSIDERED REGULARLY ATTENDS, AND IF YOU ATTEND LESS THAN 90% OF THE TIME, IT WOULD BE CONSIDERED CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM.
THE BLUE LINE VERSUS STUDENTS THAT ARE CHRONICALLY ABSENT AND AS A WHOLE FOR THE DISTRICT.
AND SO THEN LOOKING AT THIS INFORMATION JUST FOR OUR NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENTS AND NON NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENTS, WHEN WE LOOK AT THAT REGULAR ATTENDANCE, WE'RE SEEING THAT NON NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENTS, THERE ARE 72% OF THOSE STUDENTS THAT REGULARLY ATTEND, AND 49% OF OUR AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE STUDENTS THAT REGULARLY ATTEND.
SO I THINK MIA AND PROBABLY SOME OTHERS COULD SPEAK TO THIS LATER AS WELL OF SOME OF THE STRATEGIES THAT THEY'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THESE NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENTS TO TRY TO GET THEM TO COME TO SCHOOL MORE FREQUENTLY.
AND THEN I WONDER IF IT WOULD MAKE SENSE FOR MIA TO SHARE JUST RIGHT NOW, ASIDE FROM MORNING GATHERING, WHICH IS HAPPENING AT THE HIGH SCHOOL AND WAS ACTUALLY IMPLEMENTED WHEN JJ WAS THERE, SMAKIYA, MIA AND JJ WORKED TO TRY TO FIND A WAY TO BUILD COMMUNITY FOR OUR STUDENTS PRIOR TO THE START OF THE DAY. AND THIS YEAR WE HAVE CLOSE TO.
IT'S ABOUT 40 STUDENTS WHO ARE REGULARLY ATTENDING MORNING GATHERING.
AND THEN WE'RE BEGINNING TO LOOK AT HOW TO IMPLEMENT THAT AT BOTH MIDDLE SCHOOLS.
SO I WAS ASKED, HOW CAN WE INCREASE THE ATTENDANCE FOR NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENTS? AND I SAID, WELL, TRANSPORTATION IS THE BIGGEST BARRIER.
THEY HAVE NO TRANSPORTATION, NO GAS.
AND I SAID, I HAVE A SERVICE FOR TRANSPORTATION WOULD BE A BIG HELP.
AND SO IT WAS KIND OF LIKE A PILOT RUN THIS YEAR.
AND THEN I TEAMED UP WITH RACHEL BECAUSE HER KIDS WERE SHE HAD A LIST FOR VISTA, TOO.
SO I SAID, HEY, WELL, WHY DON'T YOU JUST GO? BECAUSE IT WAS KIND OF SOME OF THE SAME FAMILY AS A MIDDLE SCHOOL ELEMENTARY.
SO WE STARTED GOING OUT AND I THINK WE STARTED IN OCTOBER, BUT IT'S BEEN GOING GOOD.
BUT THEN IT FLIPPED AS SOON AS WE STARTED THE PICKUPS.
AND SO THEY'VE BEEN GETTING PRETTY GOOD.
THEY'VE BEEN LIKE, THEY JUST START MAKING IT.
SOMETIMES I STILL PICK THEM UP.
AND THEN I STARTED ON EAGLE RIDGE.
SO I PICK UP THEIR KIDDOS TOO.
WITH CHRONIC ATTENDANCE AND IT SKYLINE DID HAVE STAFF THAT WERE TRYING TO GO OUT TO THE HOMES AND PICK KIDS UP, AND THE PARENTS WERE NOT SO FORTHCOMING AND KIND OF CUSTOM OUT AND THREATENED TO REMOVE THEM.
BUT THEN I WAS LIKE, WELL, LET ME TRY.
RACHEL AND I WENT OUT AND IT WAS LIKE A THREE, SIX, 360 KNOW YOU'RE HERE TO PICK THEM UP.
BUT I TAKE ATTENDANCE LETTERS FOR OUR KIDDOS AT FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL.
IF THEY HAVE LETTERS, I DELIVER THEM, BUT I AM.
I FEEL REALLY HAPPY ABOUT THIS BECAUSE I ALWAYS FELT BAD FOR THE KIDS AT FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL ARE GETTING SERVICE, BUT WHAT ABOUT THE ELEMENTARIES AND THE MIDDLE SCHOOL? SO I'M GLAD THE MIDDLE SCHOOLS HAVE LIAISONS THERE, AND I'M HAPPY TO BE HELPING OUT AT ELEMENTARY UNTIL THEY CAN GET A FULL TIME FUNDED LIAISON THERE.
[00:25:02]
THANK YOU. THANK YOU.OKAY. THIS LAST BIT IS ABOUT FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL.
WE LOOKED AT STUDENTS AT THE HIGH SCHOOL AND HOW THEY HOW THEY ARE DISTRIBUTED ACROSS FOR CLASSES AND PROGRAMS, ATHLETICS, THAT KIND OF THING.
SO THIS CHART SHOWS AGAIN, THE ORANGE BARS ARE FOR THE NON AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE STUDENTS.
AND THE BLUE BARS ARE FOR AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE STUDENTS.
THE GOAL IS TO HAVE THEM AS CLOSE TO ONE ANOTHER AS POSSIBLE.
AND THOSE TWO BARS ARE VERY CLOSE TO ONE ANOTHER.
AND LAST YEAR WHEN WE HAD DONE THIS, WE NOTICED THAT THERE WAS NO PARTICIPATION BY ANY NON NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENT IN THOSE PROGRAMS. WHEREAS THIS YEAR WE HAVE, I BELIEVE, SIX STUDENTS IN THE GROUP THAT ARE THAT ARE NOT NATIVE AMERICAN.
AND SO THAT WAS FUN TO SEE THAT CHANGE.
SO THAT IS THE INFORMATION THAT I HAD TO SHARE.
AND THEN I'LL TURN IT OVER TO, TO YOU.
YEAH, WE'LL SWITCH OVER IN JUST A MINUTE.
BUT I WONDER IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ACTUAL DATA OR NUMBERS ABOUT THAT, THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO ASK AT THIS TIME. I'M NOT A GREAT DATA PERSON, NEED TO GO OVER IT SEVERAL TIMES AND PROBABLY ASK QUESTIONS, WHICH I WOULDN'T WANT TO HOLD UP THE WHOLE ROOM.
SO SOMETIME, YOU KNOW, LATER, MAYBE WE COULD SPEND MORE TIME QUESTIONING AND LEARNING A BETTER.
WHAT DOES THE DATA SHOW US? ABSOLUTELY. I'LL BE HAPPY TO.
SO, CARLENE, TOBY ACTUALLY HAS ACCESS TO THE INTERNAL FILES, SO SHE'S ABLE TO TRACK OUR STUDENTS AT ANY GIVEN TIME. SO WE CAN MAKE SURE TO GET THOSE REPORTS TO YOU.
BUT ALSO, WE'LL PROVIDE THIS POWERPOINT TO YOU.
AND SO WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS ACTUALLY SHARE WITH YOU THE STORIES OF OUR STUDENTS AND WHAT'S HAPPENING FOR THEM IN OUR SCHOOLS.
SO AT VISTA AND HORIZON, WE HAVE A CLUB LIKE QUEST.
WE COMBINE BOTH SCHOOLS SO THAT THEY HAVE A BOND WHEN THEY GO TO HIGH SCHOOL.
A LOT OF THE KIDS ALREADY KNOW EACH OTHER THOUGH.
WE MET IN NOVEMBER, AND THEN WE JUST HAD OUR CHRISTMAS PARTY.
WE HAVE SOME PICTURES IN HERE OF IT.
YEAH. WE'RE AVERAGING AT ABOUT 25 TO 26 KIDS PER ONE.
NEXT MONTH I WILL BE DOING A BEADING CLASS FOR BOTH SCHOOLS AT HORIZON MIDDLE SCHOOL.
WE WENT LAST MONTH TO [INAUDIBLE] TO LEARN HOW TO MAKE JAM.
THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME THEY EVER HAD A SCHOOL TAKE A FIELD TRIP THERE.
THE KIDS HAD FUN. WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING AGAIN NEXT MONTH FOR ANOTHER FIELD TRIP THERE.
SO OUR STUDENTS ARE VERY EXCITED.
SOME OF THEM I JUST MET AND THEY'RE LIKE REALLY CLOSE.
LAST WEEK I HAD A STUDENT COME UP TO ME, RUN UP TO ME.
SHE WAS REALLY STRESSED ABOUT A TEST SHE WAS TAKING, AND SHE COME RUNNING UP TO ME THE NEXT DAY WHEN SHE GOT HER TEST AND WAS 100%, SHE COME RUNNING INTO MY CLASSROOM AND SHE'S LIKE, MISS BRANDI, MISS BRANDI, LOOK AT THIS.
THREW ALL HER PAPERS ON THE FLOOR AND WAS LIKE, LOOK AT MY TEST.
WE WENT THROUGH ALL OF IT AND WAS SO EXCITED.
I REWARDED HER THE NEXT DAY BECAUSE THAT'S A HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT.
I MY DAY IN THE LIFE IS I DO CHECK AND CHECK OUT WITH THE STUDENTS WHO NEED IT.
[00:30:06]
SO I KIND OF SEE HOW THEY'RE DOING IN THE MORNING AND HOW THEY'RE DOING IN THE AFTERNOON.I REFER THEM TO ANY DEPARTMENTS THAT THEY NEED OUT IN LUMMI.
I SIT IN ON ALL OF THEIR 504 MEETINGS, IEP MEETINGS, ATTENDANCE MEETINGS.
I REACH OUT TO ALL OF THE PARENTS.
IT'S A LOT EASIER WHEN I CALL THEM VERSUS THE SCHOOL BECAUSE THEN THEY'RE LIKE, OKAY, WELL YEAH, WE'LL I DIDN'T WANT TO TALK TO THEM BECAUSE THEY WERE RUDE LAST TIME OR THEY I FEEL LIKE THEY'RE JUDGING ME.
I WORK WITH KIDS IN DIFFERENT WAYS.
I HAVE DIFFERENT BONDS, IN A SENSE, WITH STUDENTS.
I REALLY JUST LOVE WORKING THERE.
THEY COME INTO MY CLASSROOM WHENEVER THEY'RE HAVING A DOWNTIME OR THEY'RE JUST HAVING A BAD DAY.
THEY HAVE THEIR OWN LITTLE AREA.
AND ONE OF THE PICTURES, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S UP HERE.
WE HAVE LOUNGE CHAIRS IN OUR CLASSROOM.
THEY JUST GO IN THERE AND LOUNGE ALL DAY.
THEIR FAVORITE THING IS, DO YOU HAVE A SNACK? OH, THESE ARE PHOTOS FROM OUR JAM SESSION.
THIS IS A PHOTO FROM OUR GROUP.
I HAVE A STUDENT WHO PLAYS BASKETBALL.
HE CANNOT ATTEND OUR BEADING CLASS NEXT MONTH.
HE COMES IN DURING HIS LUNCH TO BEAD.
HE IS ACTUALLY ALMOST DONE WITH THAT LANYARD, SO HE'S WANTING TO LEARN HOW TO BEAT HATS NEXT.
BUT HE REALLY LOVES COMING IN TO BE ABLE TO BEAD.
SOME OF THE KIDS NEVER GOT TO GO ON FIELD TRIPS, AND THEY WERE LIKE, WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT TO GO ON A FIELD TRIP TO COME ODS? WHO GOES TO KERMODE'S PARENTS WERE LIKE, YOU TOOK MY KID TO CAMP AND I'M LIKE, WE GOT OUT OF SCHOOL.
THESE ARE MY KIDDOS THAT I GOT TO GO CHAPERON ON OUR TRIP TO CHINA.
AND IT WAS AN ADVENTURE FROM START TO FINISH.
THEY COME UP AND BROUGHT THEIR MASKS.
WE HAD ABOUT A 45 MINUTE ASSEMBLY, BUT THAT'S HOW WE GOT MORNING GATHERING GOING.
THAT'S WHEN JJ WAS THERE BECAUSE WE USED TO BRING THE ELDERS INTO THE BUILDING WHEN IT WAS A PROJECT WHERE, AND THEN WE KIND OF QUIT DOING THAT AFTER THEIR GRANT ENDED. BUT I'VE BEEN REACHING OUT TO BEHAVIORAL HEALTH, BUT THEY GOT SO MUCH TURNOVER THERE.
LIKE IT WAS A DIFFERENT PERSON THIS YEAR, DIFFERENT PERSON LAST YEAR.
SO WE REALLY NEED TO GET THAT GOING.
AND SO JJ JUST LOOKED AT ME AND SAID, EVERYBODY GATHER UP.
SEE YOU AT BREAKFAST TOMORROW.
WE'VE BEEN GOING EVER SINCE, AND WE SHOWED DATA LIKE DATA PROVED IT.
THESE KIDS HAD LESS DISCIPLINARY AND LESS TARDIES RIGHT AFTER THE PERIODS AFTER MORNING GATHERING.
AND SO HE JUST KIND OF, LIKE, DO IT AND ASK FOR FORGIVENESS LATER.
WELL. THANKS, RALPH. BUT YEAH, WE'VE BEEN MORNING GATHERING AND THEN WE'VE BEEN OPENING IT UP.
WHOEVER WANTS TO COME, THEY'RE MORE THAN WELCOME.
BUT ON FRIDAYS, THE MISS DILLON SAID, GO AHEAD AND SHARE IN THE COMMENTS OR IN THE COMMENTS AREA.
SO WHEN WE'RE IN THE COMMON AND IT'S MORE OPEN, IT FEELS MORE WELCOMING.
I SAID, WELL, IT'S OUR WAY BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT OUR KIDS ARE GOING THROUGH AT NIGHT.
SO THAT'S OUR WAY TO TRY TO PREPARE THEM FOR THE SCHOOL DAY, GET THEM ON THE RIGHT PATH.
AND SO AND WE'VE HAD OTHER PEOPLE SAY THAT REALLY THAT REALLY HELPS.
I FEEL OFF WHEN I MISS MORNING GATHERING.
I WILL GO STAND WITH OUR KIDS, BUT OUR KIDS TAKE IT UPON THEMSELVES TO THEY'RE THE DRUMMERS.
[00:35:03]
THEY'RE THE SINGERS. THEY'RE THE DANCERS.I WANT TO SAY WE'RE UP TO ALMOST 30 GIGS FOR OUR WINE CLUB GROUP NOW, WHERE WE USED TO JUST TAKE A VAN, AND THEN WE MOVED TO TWO VANS AND NOW WE'RE UP TO A BUS WHEN WE GO, WHEN WE GO PLACES.
THIS IS OUR BLANKET CEREMONY WE HAD FOR NATIVE.
WE STARTED DOING THIS AT THE OLD SCHOOL.
WE'D GO AND WRAP THE POLES IN THE OLD COMMONS, COMMONS, I GUESS YOU'D CALL IT.
THEY VOTE ON, HEY, WHICH TEACHER, WHICH STAFF MEMBER DO YOU FEEL LIKE HAS BEEN REALLY SUPPORTIVE.
THAT'S NOT OUR WHOLE GROUP, BUT IT'S A PRETTY GOOD SIZE WE WENT UP TO JJ'S SCHOOL VISTA.
WE JOINED THEM FOR THEIR VETERANS DAY ASSEMBLY AND THE THEY REALLY LIKED IT.
THEY OUR KIDS JUST LOVE SONG AND DANCE.
THE FRIDAY, JANUARY 17TH, THE FRIDAY BEFORE TREATY DAY.
SO A TREATY DAY JAM OUT EVERYBODY'S WELCOME.
YOU GUYS MIGHT HAVE SEEN THE POST.
I'VE BEEN SHARING IT ALL OVER FACEBOOK.
SO THIS IS A MORE PICTURES FROM OUR NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE NIGHT.
THESE ARE SOME OF OUR SENIOR ATHLETES.
HERE'S SOME OF OUR THESE ARE OUR GIRL WRESTLERS, AND BOY WRESTLERS.
SOME MORE OF OUR NATIVE AMERICAN ATHLETES.
THEY. LAST YEAR WE WERE TEAMING UP WITH LUMMI NATION SCHOOL AND THEY WERE TAKING TEN KIDS AND WE WERE TAKING TEN KIDS, BUT I THINK WE'RE SEPARATING NOW SO WE CAN TAKE MORE OF FERNDALE KIDS.
JUST SOME MORE PICTURES FROM MOUNT CONSTITUTION.
AND THEN WE THIS WAS OUR FIELD TRIP TO TULALIP.
WE WENT TO THE BOARDING SCHOOL SITE AND WENT DOWN TO THERE, HOW DO YOU SAY THAT? THEIR MUSEUM. HE BULB HE BULB MUSEUM.
AND WENT OUT THERE TO THE SCHOOL AND THEN WE THE KIDS DOWN THERE.
IT WAS KIND OF A IT WAS UP ON A CLIFF AND I WAS SCARED FOR THEM.
HEY, GUYS, DON'T BE GOING DOWN THERE.
AND THEY WANTED TO GO DOWN TO THE BEACH AND SING SOME SONGS.
WE PARTNERED WITH LIBC DEPARTMENTS, AND THEY TOOK THEIR 15 PASSENGER VANS.
BUT I THINK WE TOOK ALMOST 60 STUDENTS TO THAT UW.
HERE IT IS RIGHT HERE. THIS IS IT.
AND ANITA'S LIKE, I DIDN'T KNOW YOU HAD THAT MANY KIDS.
I WOULD HAVE JUST CHARTERED A BUS FOR YOU.
GOT INVITED TO A WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY FOR THEIR NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE NIGHT.
THIS WAS JUST A FEW WEEKS AGO, AND WE TOOK ALL OUR KIDS, AND THEY REALLY LOVED IT.
THIS IS WE LIKE TO TAKE THEM ON FIELD TRIPS, SO THIS IS NORTHWEST WASHINGTON FAIRGROUNDS.
TRY A TRADE. WE GOT A KIDDO IN THERE RUNNING THE FORKLIFT.
THIS IS OUR NATIVE AMERICAN RECOGNITION NIGHT.
I KNOW GOM HOSTS THEIR OWN, BUT WE STARTED HOSTED OUR OWN, BECAUSE GOM WILL ONLY HONOR IF IT'S IF THEY ARE ENROLLED IN A TRIBE. AND WE FEEL LIKE EVERY STUDENT DESERVES TO BE RECOGNIZED IF THEY IDENTIFY AS NATIVE AMERICAN.
AND ANYBODY THAT'S NATIVE AMERICAN WE OPEN UP AND WE RECOGNIZE AND HONOR THEM.
AND WE'VE BEEN REQUESTING COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTIONS.
SO THAT REALLY HELPS US FUND EVERYTHING WE DO IS FUNDED OR FUNDRAISED.
[00:40:01]
BUT WE TRY TO.I KNOW WHAT LUMMI NATION OFFERS THEIR KIDS.
I WORK THERE FOR MANY YEARS, SO I TRY TO GIVE.
THEY GET A BLANKET TO WRAP, AND SMAKIYA USUALLY HAS A CEDAR MEDALLION MADE FOR THEM, AND IT'S OUR SYMBOL AND OXALA LUMMI LANGUAGE.
THIS IS SOME PICTURES FROM OUR STUDENTS AT GRADUATION.
THESE ARE. WE STARTED GETTING MORE AND MORE KIDS WANTING TO WEAVE THEIR OWN CAPS.
SO SPHAKIA TEAMS UP WITH ETC AND THEY USUALLY GET THE CEDAR AND THEN GIVE IT TO US.
AND THEN WE WORK. THE KIDS BEEN WORKING ON WEAVING, WEAVING THEIR OWN.
OR WE HAVE STAFF THAT WILL COME VOLUNTEER AND WE'VE WON AND GIFT IT TO ONE OF OUR SENIORS.
HE'S WORKING ON A DRUM, RESTRINGING A DRUM, AND THEN THAT'S ALYSSA JULIUS.
SHE'S OUR [INAUDIBLE] PRINCESS.
BUT SHE WAS WORKING ON HER PADDLE DRESS THERE.
AND THEN WE DO EVERY CHESKWIN CLUB.
WE DO EVERYTHING. OUR KIDS DO EVERYTHING FOR THE SENIOR RECOGNITION NIGHT.
SO WE GET THE WOOD, WE GO CUT IT OUT, WE SAND IT, WE DO EVERYTHING.
IT'S KIND OF LIKE A PAY IT FORWARD, HAVE THE YOUNGER KIDS HELP.
SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO WHEN YOU ARE A SENIOR.
YEAH, BUT EVERYTHING WE DO, WE MAKE EVERYTHING.
THIS IS ONE PICTURE FROM OUR TREATY DAY ASSEMBLY.
AND THEN UP ABOVE FROM OUR BLANKET WRAPPING CEREMONY.
SOME MORE PICTURES FROM OUR FIELD TRIP.
THIS IS KRISTEN SOLOMON FLAYING THE FISH AND THE PICTURE BELOW IS KIDS ARE SHOWING OFF.
THAT WAS OUR NEWEST DESIGN, THE DOUBLE EAGLE THAT JOE JOHNSON DESIGNED FOR US.
AND THE PICTURE ABOVE IS THE TRIAD TRADE OUT AT THE ON FERNDALE ROAD.
THE WHERE THE FIREWORKS STANDS ARE.
THIS IS A FIELD TRIP WE TOOK OUT TO THE FIRST SALMON CEREMONY, AND THEN THE BOTTOM ONE IS OUR KIDS GOT INVITED UP FOR EAGLE RIDGE TREATY DAY ASSEMBLY. THEY GOT TO GO PERFORM AND THAT'S JUST MORE PICTURES OF THEM IN THE SHOP WORKING ON THEIR SENIOR PADDLES.
THAT PICTURE BELOW IS SMACK IN EYE WITH SOME KIDDOS ON THE BOAT WHEN WE WERE GOING OUT TO ORCAS ISLAND, AND IT SAYS THE THEATER THAT'S AT THE CASINO WHEN WE GOT INVITED TO NORTHWEST INDIAN COLLEGE, THEIR GALA AND ABOVE, I THINK IT WAS A CHESS CLUB MEETING WITH BEHAVIORAL HEALTH.
I GOT SOME LITTLE KIDDOS HERE TO.
YOU GUYS WANT TO SPEAK? THIS IS OUR ORANGE SHIRT DAY THAT WE ALWAYS HAD ORANGE SHIRT DAY AT LUMMI.
AND SO I WAS OUT THERE WORKING THERE FOR QUITE A WHILE YEARS.
AND I CAME TO VISTA AND I GO, HEY, JJ, HOW ABOUT US HAVE AN ORANGE SHIRT DAY? AND SO WE HAD A VIDEO AND SENT IT ALL OUT TO ALL THE TEACHERS, EXPLAINING TO ALL THE KIDS WHAT ORANGE SHIRT DAY WAS ALL ABOUT.
AND THEN WE HAD THIS THOUGHT OF THIS IDEA FOR THE DRAWING AND LET ALL THE KIDS, NOT JUST ALL THE LUMMI NATIVE KIDS, BUT ALL THE KIDS IN THE WHOLE SCHOOL WERE ABLE TO DRAW AND DO A PICTURE, AND THEY REALLY UNDERSTOOD AND HAD FUN DOING IT.
SO THIS IS SOME OF MY PICTURES THAT I HAVE.
AND THEN THIS IS WHEN WE WENT TO MAKE JAM THAT'S KIDS FROM VISTA.
WE COVERED THE WHOLE ALMOST THE WHOLE GLASS PART OF IT WITH ALL OUR PICTURES.
WE HAD SO MANY KIDS THAT DREW PICTURES OF THE ORANGE SHIRT DAY.
AND SO NOW THEY KIND OF KNOW THEY UNDERSTAND WHAT ORANGE SHIRT DAY IS ALL ABOUT.
SO I JUST WANTED TO ADD THAT INTO THE PICTURES.
SO YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE ARE POWERFUL THINGS HAPPENING FOR OUR KIDS.
AND IT'S REALLY BEEN OUR LEADERS HERE HELPING LEAD THE WORK AND OUR PRINCIPLES.
AND WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE FUNDING STREAMS THAT COME IN BOTH IMPACT AID AND TITLE SIX, OUR STAFF HERE ARE FUNDED BY THOSE STREAMS AS WELL AS SOME FAMILY RESOURCE CENTERS.
AND THEN WHEN BRANDI SAYS, I NEED BEADS, THEN WE BUY THE BEADS.
[00:45:05]
SO WE LEAD WITH YES, THEY TELL ME WHAT THEY NEED AND I SAY, YEP, WE'RE GOING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN.AND SO I'M INCREDIBLY PROUD OF WHAT'S HAPPENING AND WHAT I'VE SEEN IN MY TIME SINCE ARRIVING IN FERNDALE TILL NOW, THE VOICE OF OUR STUDENTS IS BECOMING LOUDER AND LOUDER IN THE SCHOOLS, ADVOCATING, ASKING.
IN FACT, LAST YEAR MISS DILLON AND I HAVE AN ADVISORY BOARD WHERE WE MEET WITH STUDENTS ONCE A MONTH, AND OUR STUDENTS WERE ASKING, WE NEED A TIME WHERE WE JUST GET TO COME TOGETHER FOR ADVISORY, WHERE IT'S JUST NATIVE STUDENTS.
AND THEY BROUGHT THAT IDEA UP AND WE SAID, GREAT, WE'RE GOING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN.
AND SO THAT NOW EXISTS AT FERNDALE HIGH SCHOOL.
AND SO THEY'RE CONTINUING TO FIND POWER IN THEIR VOICE.
FOUR OF THE EAGLES WE CALL THEM EAGLE TIME THEIR ADVISORY CLASSES.
AND THEN 11TH GRADE IS MYSELF IN PETER FINSTUEN.
AND THEN 12TH GRADE SENIORS IS LISA ME.
THAT WAS THE KIDS REALLY ADVOCATE.
AND THEY ALL WE STARTED IT AND THEN IT WENT AWAY AND THEY'RE LIKE, WE WANT IT BACK.
SO THEY TOOK IT UPON THEMSELVES TO GET SIGNATURES.
THEY RALLIED TOGETHER, THEY GOT SIGNATURES, AND THEY WENT TO MISS DYLAN.
AND THEY'RE LIKE, HEY, THIS IS WHAT WE WANT.
AND SO THEY SPOKE AND NOW IT'S NOW WE HAVE FOUR CLASSES.
BUT IT WAS JUST LIKE YOU SAID, JUST A TIME TO HANG OUT.
SOMETIMES YOU'RE NOT IN THE SAME CLASSES WITH YOUR FRIENDS, BUT IT'S JUST A TIME WHERE YOU CAN JUST HANG OUT WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND COME TOGETHER AND, YOU KNOW, TALK ABOUT IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING GOING ON, SOMEBODY THAT WILL UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE GOING THROUGH.
SO, IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT TO OUR KIDS.
AND I'M GLAD THEY WERE ABLE TO ADVOCATE FOR THEIR CLASS.
I REMEMBER THE DAY THAT CHANEL BOKINLEY BROUGHT THAT UP IN STUDENT ADVISORY, AND I WAS JUST STUNNED BY THE WAY THAT SHE SPOKE AND HOW FIERCELY SHE WAS WILLING TO STAND UP FOR HER FELLOW STUDENTS AND HOW MUCH PROVIDING THAT SERVICE AS A DISTRICT MEANT TO THEM.
AND SHE'S STILL SUCH AN INCREDIBLE VOICE ON THE STUDENT ADVISORY COUNCIL.
THE REAL REASON I TOOK THE MIC, THOUGH, IS THE ORANGE SHIRT DAY.
I VOLUNTEER AT VISTA FOR ONE OF MY CAREER IN EDUCATION CLASSES AND IT SPARKED A MEMORY.
THERE'S A LITTLE GIRL I WORK WITH, AND I REMEMBER COMING IN AND SHE WAS ONE DAY AFTERNOON.
SHE SHOWED ME HER DRAWING AND IT WAS AN ORANGE SHIRT, AND SHE HAD HER HISTORY TEXTBOOK OPEN, AND SHE WAS WRITING DOWN THE NAME OF EVERY TRIBE IN WASHINGTON THAT SHE COULD FIND ON THE ORANGE SHIRT.
AND SHE WAS SO EXCITED TO HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY AND TO LEARN THESE THINGS.
AND I THINK THAT WAS ESPECIALLY A REALLY IMPACTFUL EXPERIENCE FOR HER.
AND I THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY COOL.
AND I WONDER IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS.
I KNOW THIS WAS A LOT OF INFORMATION, SO WE WILL SHARE IT WITH YOU.
YOU DO HAVE THE JOINT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.
YES. FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR THE WORK YOU'RE DOING WITH OUR CHILDREN.
I THINK IT'S SO IMPORTANT WE UNDERSTAND.
I'M COMING FROM THAT PIECE OF ME THAT GRADUATED FROM FERNDALE YEARS AGO.
WHEN BEING AN ATHLETE IS WHAT SAVED YOU WHEN YOU WENT TO FERNDALE.
I NEVER DENY THAT WE HAD IT ROUGH WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP, COMING THROUGH OUR SCHOOL SYSTEMS. I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE RIGHT, AND WE'RE ADVOCATING FOR NOT ONLY INDIAN CHILDREN, BUT ALL OF OUR STUDENTS.
IT'S A REAL TIME OF ADVERSITY FOR ALL OF OUR CHILDREN, NO MATTER WHAT RACE THEY COME FROM, AND UNDERSTANDING THAT THE BEST TIME FOR EDUCATION COMES AT HOME ONE BUT TWO TO HAVE PEOPLE THAT ARE OF YOUR WAY OF LIFE BEING SOME OF YOUR TEACHERS ALLOWS YOU TO BE MORE COMFORTABLE IN VOICING YOUR CONCERNS IN ANY KIND OF EDUCATION SYSTEM.
[00:50:05]
I'M SAYING THIS SPECIFICALLY BECAUSE PATHWAYS YOU'RE FINDING, AND I'M SEEING THAT WHEN YOU LOOK AT CHILDREN THAT ARE GOING TO BE GOING INTO MAYBE PATHWAYS OF CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND ARE NOT NORMALLY GOING TO BE GOING INTO HIGHER EDUCATION, YOU'RE SEEING IT.WE'VE GOT ALL THESE THINGS THAT OUR YOUNG PEOPLE ARE SEEING AND KNOWING THAT NORMALLY THEY WON'T FOLLOW THAT TRACK OF HIGHER EDUCATION, BUT THEY'RE GOING INTO FIELDS LIKE FISHERIES OR THOSE AREAS.
AND I'M HOPING AS WE'RE GROOMING OUR YOUNG PEOPLE THAT I SEE WITH THEIR VOICES AND THEIR LANGUAGE, AS WELL AS WE KNOW, TEACHING YOUNG PEOPLE ABOUT HANDLING THE CEDAR, DOING THE BEATING, IT CALMS THEM.
SO THEY'RE ABLE TO LEARN MORE RAPIDLY.
AND I THANK THE SCHOOL SYSTEM FOR ALLOWING US TO SAY THAT, YEAH, THESE SERVICES THAT YOU'RE PROVIDING ARE MAKING A CHANGE AND COLLABORATIVELY WITH OUR SCHOOLS AND FERNDALE.
WE CAN OPEN THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM FOR ALL OF OUR KIDS, BUT I REALLY AM PROUD OF THESE YOUNG PEOPLE AS THEY COME FROM OUR COMMUNITY, AND THEY'RE HELPING BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT.
YOU FOLKS BEEN THERE, DONE THAT, AND YOU'RE COMING OUT TO MAKE IT BETTER FOR OUR CHILDREN, NEXT GENERATIONS AND US OURSELVES AS ELDERS IN THIS COMMUNITY, AS WELL AS EDUCATED YOUNG LUMBEES THAT HAVE GONE AWAY TO SCHOOL.
WE WANT IT ALL. YOU KNOW, I'M NOT GOING TO KID YOU.
WE WANT IT ALL AND WE EXPECT THEM TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY.
BECAUSE THIS SOLUTION OF WHAT'S HAPPENING OUT THERE IN THAT WORLD WILL NOT CHANGE UNLESS WE START WORKING TOGETHER TO MAKE IT BETTER FOR ALL OF OUR KIDS, SO I DO. I DEEPLY, FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART, AM THANKING YOU ALL FOR THE WORK YOU'RE DOING.
AND IT'S NOT JUST FERNDALE, IT'S BELLINGHAM, IT'S LUMMI.
I THINK IF WE WORK AND WE JOINTLY COMMUNICATE, COLLABORATE AND COOPERATE WITH EACH OTHER, WE CAN MAKE ALL THESE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE TO ALL OF OUR STUDENTS AND OPEN THE DOOR TO SOME OF THE THINGS THAT MY PEOPLE CAN SHARE WITH ALSO.
SO MY HANDS ARE UP TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU.
YES, THANK YOU, CONNIE, AND THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR STAFF, OUR LUMMI PEOPLE, AND ALL OF THE PEOPLE WHO WORK WITH YOU AND SHARE WITH YOU AND, AND HAVE DONE SO OVER THE YEARS, OR MAYBE JUST FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS THIS SEMESTER.
WE'RE REALLY GRATEFUL FOR ANY GOOD HUMAN EXPERIENCE THAT CAN HELP US GROW AND BE A LITTLE HAPPIER PEOPLE. PER SE.
WE'RE JUST HEARING THOSE COMPLAINTS, AND WE'RE NOT TRYING TO JUST PICK ON ANYBODY ABOUT IT.
BUT THE PROBLEM, I'M, I'M EVEN BEING TOLD IT'S ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
IT'S NOT JUST HERE IN WHATCOM COUNTY.
SO WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO THINK OF IS, WELL, WHAT ARE THE WAYS THAT YOU INTERVENE? AND WE KNOW THE SCHOOLS PROVIDE A LOT OF TRAINING FOR STAFF ON HOW TO COPE WITH THAT, BUT SOMETIMES IT HAS A LITTLE PERSONALITY THAT'S A LITTLE DIFFERENT, YOU KNOW, THAN WHAT PEOPLE MIGHT BE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A BETTER WAY.
AND IT KIND OF CAME COMING OUT AT LUMMI IN THE LAST CURRENT DAYS THAT WE'VE LOST LOVED ONES.
BUT ONE OF THE KEY TRAITS OF THOSE THAT WE LOST WAS THEIR DEEP KINDNESS IN THINKING
[00:55:03]
OF THEM AND HOW KIND THEY ARE WERE.AND ISN'T THAT THE LESSON THAT WE ALL NEED OUR CHILDREN TO BE REMINDED OF? AND SO JUST THINKING ABOUT KINDNESS, BEING KIND TO ONE ANOTHER, BEING KIND TO OTHER PEOPLES, NOT JUST OUR OWN PEOPLE, AND THEN FINDING THE WORDS THAT WE USE THAT SPEAK KINDNESS AND THEN BEING TRYING TO HELP SOMEBODY WHO'S TROUBLED OR ANGRY MAY BE BLURTING OUT UNKIND THINGS, BUT TRYING TO SEE A WAY.
HOW CAN WE HELP THAT PERSON? HOW CAN WE SOOTHE THAT PERSON? AND THEN ENDING UP TRYING TO BE FAIR, YOU KNOW, BE FAIR TO EVERYBODY.
SO I FEEL LIKE IT'S A HUMAN CONCERN AND IT'S THE PLACE WHERE WE WANT TO BE, WHERE WE SEE ALL THE CHILDREN BEING TREATED FAIR BECAUSE WE WANT ALL CHILDREN TO BE TREATED KINDLY, TO FEEL SAFE, BECAUSE WHEN THEY ALL FEEL SAFE, THEY CAN LEARN FASTER, BETTER, DEEPER. AND THEN THEY SHARE AND GIVE, GIVE BACK TO SOCIETY IN GOOD WAYS.
SO IT'S AN OLD FASHIONED TEACHING.
BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? IT'S STILL THE MAIN ONE.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT OUR PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT AT LUMMI IS, YOU KNOW, HOW TO GET OUR LANGUAGE KINDER AND A LITTLE BIT MORE THOUGHTFUL IN HELPING PEOPLE TO BE A LITTLE BIT SAFER HERE BECAUSE THE WHOLE WORLD IS BEING FACED WITH THE END BY CLIMATE CHANGE.
AND WE'VE HEARD THAT FOR MANY YEARS, EVER SINCE I WAS A KID, I'VE HEARD ABOUT THE END OF THE WORLD.
AND SO YOU BELIEVE IT FOR A WHILE AND THEN YOU DON'T.
AND THE PROBLEM IS WHAT'S REAL.
SO WHAT SHOULD WE BE DOING? AND NOBODY HAS THE FIRST GREAT ANSWER.
BUT THE CHILDREN ARE HEARING IT AND FEELING IT, AND I'M INTERESTED IN THAT.
THE DATA SHOWS THAT THEIR SURGE IN SCIENCE IS VERY TELLING.
THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON AND IT COULD BE TECHNICAL.
THE TECH WORLD OF WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE TECH WORLD, THAT MIGHT BE WHAT IT IS.
BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THEIR AWARENESS.
SO THAT'S WHAT I'M SEEING AND HEARING.
SO HOW DO WE SPREAD THAT? THAT'S THE THING IS HOW DO WE SPREAD IT AND MAKE SURE IT'S WORKING THROUGHOUT OUR WHOLE SCHOOL SYSTEM.
AND THAT SHOULD INCLUDE LUMMI.
AND THE WAY YOU DESCRIBED IT JUST MADE ME FEEL SO MUCH BETTER.
AND I WANT TO THANK YOU, YOUNG PEOPLE, FOR BEING THE ONES TO DO THAT FOR US.
AND I'M JUST HOPING WE'LL KEEP SPREADING THAT IN OUR SCHOOL BOARD WILL, YOU KNOW, SEE A STRONGER ROLE IN BEING SUPPORTIVE TO ALL YOUR WORK.
BUT JUST FOR THE KIDS SAKE, YOU KNOW THAT I'VE ALWAYS THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, IF ANYTHING WE DO TODAY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOR THE CHILDREN OF THE FUTURE. IT'S WORTH DOING IT.
AND WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT ALL THOSE THINGS ARE, BUT I TRULY BELIEVE THAT THE THINGS MY ELDERS DID 50, 90 YEARS AGO MADE A DIFFERENCE FOR ME IN LOTS OF WAYS.
SO I WAS THINKING ABOUT ONE THING WE DID YEARS AGO IN IN FACT, IT WAS IS CINDY'S MOM BECAUSE HER MOM WAS THE DIRECTOR OF OUR HEAD START FOR QUITE A WHILE.
AND SHE SHARED WITH US SOME OF THIS INFORMATION ON DATA.
SHE UNDERSTOOD IT AND SHE WOULD SHARE WITH US.
AND WE WERE REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE CHILDREN GETTING MORE AND MORE SPECIAL ED, TESTING AND IN THE SPECIAL EDITOR NEEDS WERE INCREASING AND WE UNDERSTOOD THAT A PART OF THAT WAS BECAUSE OF THE DRUG CRISIS THAT STARTED MANY YEARS AGO, 50 YEARS AGO.
AND WHAT SHOULD WE BE DOING? SO WE WERE TRYING TO LOOK AT WAYS THAT HELP CHILDREN LEARN SO THAT WE COULD DEAL, DO BETTER IN HEAD START IN PRESCHOOL.
AND THEY DID A STUDY IN ALASKA FOR NATIVE CHILDREN.
[01:00:08]
AND WHY NOT USE THOSE METHODS TO HELP THEM DO BETTER? AND THEN THEY TESTED A LITTLE MORE AND THEY DISCOVERED THOSE SAME THINGS WORK FOR ALL CHILDREN.SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE SPENDING TIME ON LEARNING WHAT HELPS NATIVE CHILDREN LEARN FASTER, WHICH IS NOT EXACTLY WHAT THE PUBLIC SCHOOL IS DOING, BUT IF THEY DID, IT MIGHT TURN OUT IT BENEFITS ALL THE CHILDREN MORE.
SO I'M NOT GOING TO BE SURPRISED IF YOU TELL ME THAT NON NATIVE CHILDREN DO VERY WELL WITH SOME OF THESE EXPERIENCES, BECAUSE ALL CHILDREN MAY DO BETTER WHEN THEY GET A CHANCE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE.
SO THAT'S THE EXPERIENCE I LIKE.
WHEN I USED TO COME HERE YEARS AGO, MY SONS WERE HERE AND SOME OF THE TEACHERS KNEW ABOUT ME.
I REALLY DID KNOW A LOT ABOUT RACE PROBLEMS. I LEARNED THE HARD WAY.
WHEN I CAME HERE, I WAS LOOKING FOR THEM.
I WAS TRYING TO SEE WHERE ARE THEY? AND THE NATIVE, THE LUMMI PEOPLE WOULD SAY, OH, WE DON'T DO WE DON'T DO THAT.
I TRIED, I COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHY.
AND THEY SAID, WELL, BECAUSE IF YOU DO, THEY'LL JUST TREAT THE CHILDREN WORSE.
IF YOU BRING IT OUT, THEY'LL JUST TREAT THE CHILDREN WORSE.
SO, WE DON'T WANT OUR CHILDREN TREATED WORSE.
SO, WE DON'T WANT TO MAKE AN ISSUE OF THE RACE PROBLEM.
AND I JUST THOUGHT, OH MY GOSH, THAT'S NOT THE WAY YOU DO IT.
I WANT ACTION, YOU KNOW? SO IT WAS REALLY HARD FOR ME TO ADJUST.
BUT I DISCOVERED LATER THAT THAT WAS TRUE.
I MEAN, IF YOU SAY THINGS THAT PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO HEAR ABOUT, THEY DO RETALIATE.
AND OUR CHILDREN DID GET MORE PUNISHMENT FROM THE JUDGE BOLT DECISION.
SO, THE REALITY OF THE RACE PROBLEMS HAVE BEEN HARD FOR OUR OWN PEOPLE TO TALK ABOUT, TO BE ABLE TO EXPRESS.
AND SO THE MORE WE CAN ALL DO THAT, THE BETTER AND FIND BETTER WAYS TO DO IT.
SO SOME OF THE TEACHERS USED TO ASK ME TO COME OVER AND TALK IN THE CLASSROOM ABOUT WHAT'S IT LIKE TO BE INDIAN, WHAT'S IT LIKE TO BE A LUMMI? WHICH I LOVE TO DO.
AND SO I COULD TALK ABOUT SOME OF MY HURTS AND DISAPPOINTMENTS.
BUT WHAT I DISCOVERED WHEN I DID THAT IS THAT SOME OF THE CHILDREN, NON-INDIAN CHILDREN, SPOKE UP AND SAID, WELL, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHAT BOTHERS ME.
AND THEN THEY'D OPEN UP AND TALK ABOUT WHAT WAS DISTURBING THEM WITH THE RACIAL TENSION OR THE DIFFERENCES OR PEOPLE NOT BEING ABLE TO TREAT EACH OTHER FAIR.
AND THE MOST BEAUTIFUL EXPERIENCE I EVER HAD HERE WAS WHEN THEY TOTALLY LEFT ME OUT.
AND THEY TURNED AND THEY STARTED TALKING TO EACH OTHER IN THE CLASSROOM ABOUT THOSE PROBLEMS. I DIDN'T HAVE TO SAY ANOTHER WORD BECAUSE THE NON-INDIAN AND THE LUMMI CHILDREN STARTED TALKING TO EACH OTHER ABOUT THE DIFFERENCES THEY'RE HAVING, AND THEY DIDN'T LIKE IT, AND THEY WOULD LIKE TO CHANGE.
SO THAT'S WHAT I BELIEVE IN, IS THAT THE MORE WE GIVE THE CHILDREN THE RIGHT TO TALK AND SPEAK IN A GOOD WAY, HEALTHY WAY, THE BETTER THE RELATIONS GET. SO THE FACT THAT WE DO HAVE RACIAL PROBLEMS AND, YOU KNOW, TO ME IT'S A FACT.
I DON'T HAVE ANY TROUBLE ADMITTING IT AND IDENTIFYING IT, BUT IT ISN'T GOING TO STOP ME.
FOR ME, IT IS NOT GOING TO STOP ME.
I'M GOING TO KEEP DOING WHAT I DO AND WHAT I LOVE.
BUT FOR SOME OF OUR PEOPLE, THAT ISN'T TRUE.
SO I WANT WHAT'S FAIR FOR THEM.
AND I WANT US TO LEARN TO TALK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED, HAPPENED.
AND GUESS WHAT? MY MOTHER WAS WHITE.
HALF OF MY ANCESTRY IS WHITE, SO MAYBE IT'S EASIER FOR ME.
SO WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THESE RACE, YOU KNOW HOW YOU'RE DESCRIBING THESE CHILDREN.
I SAY, WELL, YOU KNOW WHAT? THAT'S THE PROBLEM RIGHT THERE.
AND SO WE WANT TO FIND A WAY TO MAKE THAT SAFE HERE FOR ALL OF THEM.
[01:05:01]
THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE.AND I KNOW MY PEOPLE STRONGLY LOVE EVERYBODY IN THE WORLD, EVEN THOUGH WE ACT UP SOMETIMES.
I USED TO HAVE FRIENDS FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, FROM OTHER TRIBES, BECAUSE I GOT TO TRAVEL AND MEET THEM, AND I'D BRING THEM HERE TO LUMMI AND THEY'D SAY, YOU KNOW WHAT I LOVE ABOUT YOUR PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY ALWAYS SMILE AND THEY ALWAYS HUG, AND THEY TREAT ME SO WELL.
AND I THOUGHT, WELL, WHY IS THAT? BECAUSE IT'S A SIMPLE THING.
IF YOU GO TO ANOTHER COUNTRY, YOU'RE IN OTHER PEOPLE'S TERRITORY.
YOU WANT TO FIND OUT WHAT THEY BELIEVE IN AND WHAT THEIR MANNERS, THEIR COURTESIES ARE.
AND THEN YOU WANT TO ABIDE BY THEIR COURTESIES.
SO YOU'RE BEING ACCEPTED AND THEY TRUST YOU AND THEY SEE THAT YOU RESPECT THEM.
AND I THOUGHT, WELL, THAT'S TRUE EVERYWHERE.
YOU KNOW, YOU JUST DON'T WALK INTO SOMEBODY'S HOME OR THEIR COUNTRY AND ACT LIKE YOU'RE GOING TO TAKE OVER OR YOU'RE GOING TO BE THE BOSS, YOU KNOW? SO IF WE COULD JUST TEACH OUR CHILDREN, A LOT OF THAT IS JUST WELCOMING ONE ANOTHER, AND YOU'RE DOING THAT WHEN YOU'RE DOING THESE ACTIVITIES.
AND IT JUST MAKES ME SO THRILLED, YOU KNOW, THAT WE COULD DO THAT.
HOW MANY OF YOU WERE HERE WHEN THE SUPERINTENDENT A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO BROUGHT US ALL TOGETHER.
AND THEN SHE ASKED EVERY EVERYONE IN THE ROOM TO SAY, WAS IT THANK YOU IN THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE? WAS THAT THE WAS THAT IT? IT WAS. ANYWAY, THEY WENT AROUND THE ROOM AND THERE WERE MANY DIFFERENT LANGUAGE GROUPS THERE, AND IT WAS THE MOST WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE I'D EVER HAD HERE AT FERNDALE. AND THEN WHEN IT CAME HER TURN, SHE SAID, HI IN LUMMI LANGUAGE.
SOMEBODY HAD TAUGHT HER HOW TO SAY SO.
AND SO WE EXPERIENCED TOGETHERNESS IN JUST ONE WORD, SHARING LIKE THAT AND THAT.
HER KINDNESS WAS SO OVERWHELMING.
SO AGAIN, I FELT IT HERE TONIGHT.
THANK YOU. I'LL JUST KEEP IT BRIEF, BUT I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU.
AND GETTING THE STUDENTS HERE AND BEADING THEIR SPIRIT.
I JUST WANTED TO ADD MORE LIKE YOU SAID, COMFORTABLE AND SAFE AND SMACKY AND I WORK VERY HARD TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN FOR HIS CLASSROOM, NOT JUST FOR OUR NATIVE KIDDOS, BUT ANYBODY THAT WANTS TO ENTER.
AND WE JUST HAVE ONE RULE YOU'RE GOING TO BE THAT'S IT.
YOU'RE GOING TO BE KIND AND YOU'RE GOING TO BE RESPECTFUL TO ONE ANOTHER.
AND WE HAVE REGULAR KIDS THAT ARE NON-NATIVE THAT THEY COME IN, THEY JUST COME IN AND SAY HI OR THEY COME IN AND THEY WANT A SNACK OR THEY WANT WATER. SO THE ONLY RULE IS THEY HAVE TO ASK IN THE LUMMI LANGUAGE, AND SMACKY HAS IT UP ON THE BOARD, [INAUDIBLE] IS IF THEY WANT A SNACK AND NOT FOR WATER.
BUT WE, WE WORK VERY HARD TO MAKE THAT THEIR, THEIR COMFORT SPACE.
IT'S ALMOST LIKE THEIR SECOND HOME.
SO I GO WITH THEM EVERYWHERE, THEIR IEPS, THEIR ATTENDANCE, ANY MEETING I GO AND ON THEIR BEHALF.
THAT'S WHAT I ALWAYS TELL THEM. HEY, I WORK FOR THE DISTRICT, BUT I'M YOUR ADVOCATE.
AND SO WE ARE MAKING GOOD WAVES, LIKE YOU'RE SAYING.
I HAD PARENTS, EVEN GRANDPARENTS KIND OF NERVOUS ABOUT.
OH, FERNDALE THIS, FERNDALE THAT.
AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S CHANGED A LOT SINCE I WAS THERE.
WE'RE GOING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
AND I'M REALLY GRATEFUL FOR THE DISTRICT ALLOWING US TO KEEP MOVING FORWARD.
AND I ALWAYS SAY THIS YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT OUR KIDS ARE GOING THROUGH.
SOME KIDS GO TO SCHOOL TO LEARN, AND SOME KIDS GO TO SCHOOL TO BE LOVED.
AND I'M GOING TO FEED TO WHATEVER, WHATEVER THEIR NEED.
[01:10:03]
AND I SAID, BECAUSE IF THEY'RE NOT IN THE RIGHT STATE OF MIND, THEY'RE NOT GOING TO LEARN.SO DOES IT MATTER IF YOU HEY, YOU CAN'T LEAVE THE CLASS? IF THEY'RE NOT THINKING STRAIGHT AND GOT A CLEAR MIND, THEN NO LEARNING IS GOING TO HAPPEN.
AND SO I THINK IT'S JUST IMPORTANT WE NEED TO GET MORE CLASSES GEARED TOWARDS THE NATIVE.
AND FOR SOME REASON, IT KIND OF.
I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T KNOW. I DON'T KNOW.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED, BUT WE NO LONGER HAVE IT.
AND I REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED, BUT ALL OF A SUDDEN.
NO, NO, NO IT DID. WE DID AWAY WITH THAT.
LIKE HE CAN TEACH LIKE A WEAVING MATH CLASS AT THE COLLEGE.
AND I KNOW THAT'S ONE OF OUR THINGS THAT NOT JUST OUR NATIVE STUDENTS, BUT ALL STUDENTS.
BUT THAT WOULD BE A GOOD ALTERNATIVE TO MATH IF THEY HAD THIS WEAVING.
JUST LOOKING AT THAT DATA, I WAS JUST KIND OF THINKING ABOUT IT.
WELL, THEY'RE NOT REALLY LIKE ART, LIKE THEY'RE NOT IN THE SPHERES AND DIMENSIONS.
SMAKIYA DOES EVERYTHING WITH THE KIDS IN THE CLASS.
IF THEY WANT TO DO A DRUM, HE'LL DO A DRUM.
MOCCASINS. OUR BIG PROJECT LAST YEAR WAS MAKING RIBBON SKIRTS AND THE VESTS FOR OUR DRUMMERS, OUR DANCERS. AND SO THAT'S WHAT THEY WERE.
WHEN WE GO OUT THE BLUE, THE BLUE RIBBONS AND THE BLUE VEST.
IT WAS SMAKIYA. SMAKIYA WAS TEACHING ME HOW TO SEW AND CUT AND EVERYTHING.
AND HIM AND I WERE IN THERE WORKING WITH THE KIDS.
AND I'M GRATEFUL BECAUSE KRISTI FOUND US SOME SEWING MACHINES.
SO WE HAVE LIKE, FIVE SEWING MACHINES.
SO, LIKE, YOU SEE IN THAT ONE PICTURE, WHATEVER THEY'RE NEEDING, THEY ASK, CAN WE COME WORK OR CAN YOU HELP ME DO THIS? CAN YOU HELP ME DO THAT? AND WE'RE ABLE TO WE'RE ABLE TO OFFER THAT TO THEM.
AND I, I REALLY DO ADVOCATE WITH EVERYTHING IN ME FOR THESE KIDS, EVEN IF I'M GOING AGAINST, YOU KNOW, A BRICK WALL, I DO I LIKE I SAID, NO, THAT'S I DO I SAID, THAT'S MY JOB.
IF I WASN'T DOING THAT, THEN I SHOULDN'T BE HERE.
BUT THAT'S JUST HOW I AM FOR MY PEOPLE.
GOT TO DO WHAT'S RIGHT, EVEN IF YOU STAND ALONE.
SO. I JUST WANT TO ADD SOMETHING.
OH, SORRY. ABOUT VISTA, WE WANT TO HAVE THE MORNING GATHERING AT VISTA AND DO KIND OF WHAT ME AND THEM ARE DOING, BUT I'VE ONLY BEEN THERE A COUPLE OF MONTHS, SO JJ IS LIKE, OH, WE GOT TO DO THIS.
AND I WAS LIKE, OKAY, GIVE ME TIME TO GET TO KNOW EVERYBODY HERE BEFORE WE START.
BUT THAT'S OUR GOAL IS TO HAVE MORNING AND HAVE OUR OWN SINGER AND DANCERS THAT ARE ON SCHOOL.
SO WE HAVE WHEN WE HAVE EVENTS, WE CAN USE THEM FOR THAT.
I KNOW RACHEL AND I KNOW MIA, YOU KNOW, FROM JUST OUR COMMUNITY.
YOU KNOW, I KNOW YOU KNOW, A LOT OF EVERYBODY.
I SEE A GREAT FOR VISTA HIGH SCHOOL.
BUT WHAT ABOUT MY ELEMENTARY DAUGHTER? YOU KNOW, I THINK, YOU KNOW, I WE'RE A BASKETBALL FAMILY.
AND I KNOW I WISH MY SON WOULD PARTICIPATE INTO THESE THINGS.
BUT YOU KNOW, HE'S INTO HIS SPORTS.
BUT MY DAUGHTER WOULD LOVE DANCE.
SHE WOULD LOVE TO SING AND DANCE.
SHE WANTS TO GO TO LUMMI NATION SCHOOL BECAUSE HER BEST FRIENDS ARE THERE.
AND THEN BUT THEN, YOU KNOW, SHE FINALLY GOT USED TO BEING IN FERNDALE AT SKYLINE, YOU KNOW, FROM BEING TOGETHER AT EARLY LEARNING FOR A LONG TIME, FOR MANY YEARS, AND THEN SEPARATING WHEN THEY GOT OLDER.
AND, YOU KNOW, I JUST THINK, THINK THAT SHOULD BE A RESOURCE FOR MY DAUGHTER BECAUSE I KNOW SHE WOULD LOVE TO PARTICIPATE BECAUSE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S DRAWING HER TO GO TO LUMMI. BUT, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO DO MY BEST TO ALWAYS SUPPORT HER AND LET HER BE.
[01:15:03]
THAT THEY DON'T TALK ABOUT IT, BUT, YOU KNOW, THEY WERE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT IT AT SCHOOL.SO MY MASON CAME HOME AND TALKED ABOUT THAT AND HOW GRATEFUL HE WAS ABLE TO LEARN.
BUT I JUST THINK, YOU KNOW, MY DAUGHTER BEING AN ELEMENTARY STUDENT HERE IN THE FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT, I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT SHOULD BE GOING TOWARDS ELEMENTARY, BECAUSE I JUST GOT TO KNOW RACHEL THIS RECENTLY AND, YOU KNOW, AND LEARNING WHAT RACHEL DOES FROM OUTSIDE OF BEING AT LUMMI, BUT NOW KNOWING HER ROLE HERE.
SO I'M ABLE TO GO TO HER IF I NEED TO FROM MY SON.
I JUST WANT TO ADD I APPRECIATE THAT SO MUCH.
AND THAT IS OUR GOAL FOR THIS YEAR WAS ELEVATED.
SO HER JOB IS TO HELP US LOOK INTO ESPECIALLY EAGLE RIDGE AND SKYLINE.
SO SHE'S BEEN PARTNERING WITH THOSE TWO SCHOOLS.
AND THEN THIS YEAR WE ADDED THE TWO MIDDLE SCHOOL POSITIONS.
AND OUR ULTIMATE GOAL IS TO ADD AT LEAST TWO ELEMENTARY POSITIONS AS WELL.
I JUST WANTED I JUST WANTED TO ADD THAT BOTH PRINCIPALS AT BOTH SCHOOLS ARE WILLING.
WE'VE BEEN UP THERE FOR ASSEMBLIES FOR BOTH OF THEM, BUT OBADIAH AND MISHA, THEY BOTH ARE WILLING TO TEAM WITH US BECAUSE I SAID, HEY, WHATEVER YOU'RE NEEDING FROM US, CALL.
I THINK THAT WAS LAST YEAR AT A MEETING WITH THEM.
SO I DO GET A LOT OF CALLS FROM EVERYBODY.
JUST KIND OF WANTING TO PICK MY BRAIN, AND I JUST.
I FEEL LIKE IT'S IMPORTANT THAT BECAUSE OUR KIDS, YOU KNOW, WE GOT DIFFERENT SEASONS AND WHATNOT.
THIS IS WHY OUR KIDDO MIGHT BE TIRED OR I USUALLY WILL SEND SOMETHING OUT BECAUSE SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW, OUR COMMUNITY GETS HIT WITH A LOT OF DEATH, YOU KNOW, BACK TO BACK.
SO SOMETIMES I'LL SEND OUT AN EMAIL.
HEY, OUR COMMUNITY KIND OF GOT HIT HARD.
SO, YOU KNOW, BE GENTLE WITH OUR KIDS.
SOME ARE GOING TO BE ANGRY, SOME ARE GOING TO BE SAD.
IF THEY WANT, THEY CAN COME TO THE CLASS AND JUST CALM DOWN.
BUT I FEEL LIKE WE NEED SOME KIND OF CULTURAL SENSITIVITY TRAINING.
JUST THE BARE, JUST BASIC LIKE I KNOW I WAS ASKED, I THINK IT WAS LAST SUMMER TO GO TO THE NEW STUDENT NEW STAFF ORIENTATION, AND I SHARED SOME THINGS WITH THEM THAT MIGHT BE HELPFUL.
HOW TO CONNECT WITH THE NATIVE KIDDOS.
YOU DON'T LOOK THEM IN THE EYE.
YOU LOOK, YOU LOOK, YOU LOOK DOWN.
I SAID THEY'RE NOT DOING IT TO BE DISRESPECTFUL.
THAT'S JUST HOW THEY WERE TAUGHT.
YOU DON'T LOOK THEM, YOU KNOW, IT'S SO.
IT'S JUST SMALL THINGS LIKE THAT.
THEY'RE NOT BEING DISRESPECTFUL.
THEY'RE. THIS IS JUST HOW THEY WERE TAUGHT.
THAT SHOULD BE A DISTRICT WIDE, SHOULD HAVE THAT CULTURAL SENSITIVITY TRAINING.
WELL, THANK YOU TO ALL FOR SHARING.
[3. MATTERS RESERVED FOR BOARD ACTION]
I MEAN, I THINK THE, THE KEY TAKE HOME MESSAGES THAT I'M SEEING FROM THIS DISCUSSION TONIGHT IS ONE WE ALL CARE ABOUT THE KIDS AND THEIR OUTCOMES, AND WE WANT THE BEST FOR THEM. AND THROUGH WORKING TOGETHER AND UNDERSTANDING EACH OTHER, WE'RE GOING TO ACHIEVE THOSE BEST OUTCOMES.THE ONE ITEM OF BUSINESS THAT WE DO NEED TO TAKE CARE OF TONIGHT IS TO ACT ON THE GET MYSELF HERE, THE LUMMI NATION EDUCATION BOARD AND FERNDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT JOINT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES RUBRIC, WHICH HAS BEEN PRESENTED TO THE BOARD.
IT'S ON BOARD DOCS AS FAR AS THERE, AND I THINK DOES EVERYBODY HAVE A COPY? OKAY. YEAH.
SO IF THERE'S ANY FEEDBACK IN REGARDS TO THIS, WE'RE CERTAINLY WELCOME THAT FEEDBACK AT THIS POINT.
AND AS OVER THE YEARS I'VE BEEN TOLD AND HAVE LEARNED TO UNDERSTAND THIS IS A LIVING DOCUMENT.
[01:20:07]
IT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT IS SET IN STONE AT ONE POINT.SO. SO IT COULD BE THAT YOU TAKE IT.
THIS WAS RECORDED SO WE CAN PROVIDE THAT AS WELL.
AND AS THE MONTHS GO ON, I WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH AN UPDATE.
ONCE THE GRADUATION RATES, I'D BE HAPPY TO COME BACK OUT AND MEET WITH YOU AND SHARE MORE.
THIS NEEDS TO BE SOMETHING THAT WE COLLECTIVELY BUILD TOGETHER FOR OUR KIDS.
WE DO NEED APPROVAL BY THE END OF JANUARY.
THIS IT CHANGED A LITTLE BIT BASED ON THE FEEDBACK AND SOME OF THE INPUT.
THERE'S BEEN WE'VE BEEN MEETING I'VE BEEN MEETING WITH THIS TEAM.
WE MEET ALMOST BI MONTHLY TO TALK ABOUT IT.
CINDY AND I MET DOCTOR TOM, AND I HAD BEEN MEETING FOR A WHILE AND LOOKING AT THE DATA.
LAST YEAR WE BEGAN ADDING THINGS AND SAYING, NO, THIS ONE DOESN'T WORK.
THE FAULT OF THE DOCUMENT LAST YEAR WAS IT WAS NOT HIGHLIGHTING THE STRENGTHS OF OUR STUDENTS.
AND SO THIS YEAR YOU'LL SEE THE THE CHANGE IN THAT.
AND THERE'S SOME PIECES MISSING.
AND SO LIKE WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE TRAININGS FOR THE STAFF.
ALL THE ADMINISTRATORS WENT THROUGH A TRAINING THIS LAST YEAR.
AND SO NOW HOW DO WE BRING THAT TO OUR STAFF? SO THERE IS A LOT OF WORK TO BE DONE STILL.
OKAY, SO GIVEN THAT WE DEFINITELY WANT THAT INPUT, I'M GOING TO PROPOSE THAT WE DELAY ACTION ON THIS UNTIL OUR JANUARY MEETING. THE OTHER THING THAT I WANT TO THROW IN THERE, JUANITA GET AHOLD OF BOBBY.
HE'S GREAT WITH DATA AND MAKING IT UNDERSTANDABLE TO YOU.
SO DON'T HESITATE TO REACH OUT TO HIM.
I KNOW THAT SOMETIMES IT'S LIKE, WHOA, THERE'S SO MUCH.
BUT IT REALLY HE MAKES IT UNDERSTANDABLE.
OKAY. WELL, THEN WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO AT THIS POINT IS, AGAIN, THANK OUR LUMMI FRIENDS FOR JOINING WITH US AND HAVING A GOOD CONVERSATION.
YOU KNOW, WE DO THIS AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR, AND I KNOW THERE'S A LOT THAT GOES ON BEHIND THE SCENES, BUT MAYBE WE NEED TO BE DOING IT MORE OFTEN BECAUSE I THINK IT'S BENEFICIAL FOR ALL. SO AT THIS POINT, I WILL END OUR, THIS SPECIAL MEETING.
SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR COMING.
ON BEHALF OF LUMMI, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY A FEW WORDS.
JUST THANKING OUR OWN LUMMI FOLKS HERE FOR WORKING WITH THE STUDENTS HERE AT FERNDALE.
AND, YOU KNOW, JUST REALLY THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THE ATTENDANCE ISSUES THAT WE'VE HAD AND THE BULLYING ISSUES THAT WE KEEP HEARING ABOUT, AND WE'RE DEFINITELY WORKING ON THEM AT LUMMI.
AND THE CONVERSATIONS ARE HAPPENING TO TRY TO IMPROVE IN THIS AREA, BUT JUST REALLY APPRECIATE THIS, THIS CONVERSATION AND THESE MEETINGS HAPPENING. YOU KNOW, THAT'S HOW OUR PEOPLE ARE GOING TO GROW.
I MEAN, THE SYSTEM THAT WE'RE IN TODAY IS NOT A SYSTEM WE'RE USED TO.
YOU KNOW, WE'RE STILL LEARNING THE READING, WRITING, THE TECHNOLOGY.
AND IT'S REALLY A GREAT THING FOR OUR CHILDREN TO BE MOVING FORWARD, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S THERE'S NOT ENOUGH WORDS, THE BLANKET CEREMONY THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE IS A REAL THING IN OUR WORLD.
YOU KNOW, TO COVER SOMEBODY, TO PROTECT THEM IS A BIG THING.
[01:25:01]
AND WRAP THEM AS A REAL, REAL CEREMONY.AND IT'S ACKNOWLEDGING, YOU KNOW, THE TRADE THE TRADE OFF THAT PERSON BECAUSE THERE'S A SACRIFICE.
RIGHT. YOU TAKE THE TIME OUT OF YOUR DAY AND YOUR TIME IS VALUABLE.
SO THAT'S A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE BLANKET CEREMONY THAT YEAR.
A LOT OF US CONDUCT TODAY AND A LOT OF US DON'T KNOW WHY WE DO IT, BUT IT'S PROTECT WHAT'S INSIDE HERE BECAUSE YOU HAVE YOUR PERSONAL THINGS AT HOME, RIGHT? ALL OF US DO.
AND THAT'S WHAT THAT BLANKET CEREMONY IS WHEN YOU'RE COVERED, WHEN YOU'RE WRAPPING ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL THAT'S CARING FOR THEM AND THANKING THEM, BLESSING THEM FOR THE WORK THAT THEY'RE WORKING ON, TAKING THEIR TIME TO COME.
AND DO YOU KNOW, AND OF COURSE, THERE'S PAYMENT ON THAT OTHER SIDE, A PAYCHECK.
BUT THAT'S WHAT THE BLANKET CEREMONY IS.
I JUST WANTED TO EXPRESS THESE THINGS AND EXPRESS MY GRATITUDE.
I DIDN'T WANT TO. IN OUR WAY, WE DON'T STEP IN FRONT OF OUR ELDERS.
WE ALLOW THEM TO SPEAK THEM FIRST.
BUT ON BEHALF OF LUMMI, I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT WE APPRECIATE ALL OF THIS WORK.
YOU KNOW, THE COLLABORATION COMING TOGETHER.
AND THAT'S REALLY MEANINGFUL, THAT YOU'RE BRIDGING THESE GAPS FOR OUR CHILDREN AND THEIR IT'S THERE YOU KNOW, OUR VALUE SYSTEM IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT THAN THE [INAUDIBLE] OR THE WHITE SYSTEM.
WE ARE TAUGHT THAT YOU GIVE THE MORE YOU CAN GIVE IS WHAT MAKES YOU STATUS.
IT'S DIFFERENT IN TODAY'S WORLD.
THE MATERIAL THINGS YOU OWN AND POSSESS, YOU KNOW, OR STATUS NOWADAYS.
SO I JUST WANTED TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT AND THANK YOU ALL.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.