CNAY gets grant to promote racial equity, healing among Native youth

WASHINGTON – The Center for Native American Youth (CNAY) at the Aspen Institute has begun a three-year project funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to promote racial equity and healing for Native American youth. The $450,000 grant will foster racial healing through peer-to-peer dialogues with Native youth and a collaborative strategy to shift the national narrative to highlight the strengths and resiliency of Native American youth.

“Native youth are doing incredible things to address the considerable challenges across Indian Country,” said CNAY Executive Director Erik Stegman. “With support from the W.K. Kellogg foundation, CNAY will work with our partners to lift up those positive stories, connect Native youth leaders to one another, and continue our collective efforts to remove the barriers between Native youth and success.”

Native youth face significant disparities in the areas of family income, healthcare, education, and their interactions with the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, among others. This project will support CNAY’s effort to raise awareness of these issues and collaborate with tribal organizations and national advocacy coalitions to elevate and support positive Native youth-focused efforts.

This project also includes: (1) CNAY-facilitated healing dialogues in tribal communities where Native youth will have the opportunity to share about strengths, difficulties, promising programs and initiatives, and other resources necessary to remove barriers to opportunity; and (2) a redesign of CNAY’s digital engagement resources, including its online resource platform, which will make it easier for Native youth to find resources, programs, opportunities, and other Native youth focused on supporting their well-being and success.

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, founded in 1930, is an independent, private foundation guided by the belief that all children should have an equal opportunity to thrive. WKKF works with communities to create conditions for vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work and life.

The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle Creek, Michigan, and works throughout the United States and internationally, as well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face significant barriers to success. For more information, visit www.wkkf.org.

Center for Native American Youth is dedicated to improving the health, safety and overall well-being of Native American youth through communication, policy development and advocacy. Founded by former US Senator Byron Dorgan in February 2011, CNAY is a policy program within the Aspen Institute, headquartered in Washington, DC. For more information, visit www.cnay.org

The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, DC. Its mission is to foster leadership based on enduring values and to provide a nonpartisan venue for dealing with critical issues. The Institute is based in Washington, DC; Aspen, Colorado; and on the Wye River on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. It also has offices in New York City and an international network of partners. For more information, visit www.aspeninstitute.org.