FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact
Sacha Smith
(505) 867-0775
sacha@nb3f.org
SANTA ANA PUEBLO, N.M. (December 2, 2019) – The Notah Begay III (NB3) Foundation announced it has been awarded a two-year $167,000 grant from the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians to develop an indigenous informed evaluation toolkit that can be shared with Native communities across the country.
“We are grateful for the continued support of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and their understanding of the importance of indigenous centered, community-based evaluation in our communities,” President and CEO Justin Kii Huenemann said.
In particular, the NB3 Foundation will build on Native-led research and its own indigenous health framework to further develop the Youth Program Evaluation Toolkit. The toolkit will assist community programs in administering youth inventory, parent/caregiver surveys and staff self-assessments. The tools in this toolkit aim to provide responses that better inform staff about youth and parent/caregiver needs.
“Essentially, the toolkit is a customizable evaluation guide for youth programs that is meant to center the indigenous voice,” NB3 Foundation Evaluation Specialist Renee Goldtooth-Halwood said. “The toolkit will include our outcome statements based on the indigenous health model and the four core areas of healthy nutrition, physical activity, youth development and cultural connections.”
The Foundation will take a focused approach to understand the community partners’ capacity, their values and how best to create an evaluation approach that reflects and supports their community’s needs and strengths.
“At the heart of our efforts is to ensure Native youth serving organizations are able to effectively evaluate their programs, measure their defined successes and tell their own stories,” Huenemann said. “We aim to provide supportive tools and methods that empower organizations to own and control their evaluation process.”
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About Notah Begay III Foundation
The Notah Begay III (NB3) Foundation is a national, award-winning Native American nonprofit organization dedicated to Native American children’s health. Our mission is to ensure Native children achieve their full potential by advancing cultures of Native American community health. The NB3 Foundation invests in community-driven and culturally relevant programs that promote healthy nutrition, physical activity, cultural connections and youth development. We are committed to a vision that all children live healthy, happy and fulfilled lives. Learn more about the NB3 Foundation at: www.nb3foundation.org
About San Manuel Band of Mission Indians
The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians is a federally recognized Indian tribe located on the San Manuel Indian Reservation near Highland, California. San Manuel exercises its inherent sovereign right of self-governance and provides essential services for its citizens by building infrastructure, maintaining civil services and promoting social, economic and cultural development. As descendants of the indigenous people of the San Bernardino highlands, passes, valleys, mountains and high deserts, the Serrano people of San Manuel have called this area home since time immemorial and are committed to remaining a productive partner in the San Bernardino region.
