Ensuring high quality, culturally appropriate, prenatal-to-kindergarten entry early childhood services to American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children is a critical policy and programmatic priority for tribal communities throughout the United States. Health care and education is considered a fundamental treaty right by many tribes, and the fact that AI/AN populations experience disparities in health and well-being relative to other population groups, highlights a significant need for targeted services. Interventions in the first few years of a child’s life have significant impacts on their lifelong health, economic and social well-being. Programs like Head Start, child care, and home visiting are key resources for children and families in diverse tribal communities. However, tribes often struggle to work across these traditionally siloed programs to build stronger early childhood systems to support their youngest and most vulnerable citizens in a seamless and coordinated way.
In collaboration with tribal communities and partners across the federal government, ECD is engaged in efforts to support and strengthen the implementation and coordination of early childhood programs and systems in tribal communities:
- Tribal Early Childhood Working Group
- This group of tribal leaders, tribal early childhood program administrators, and federal staff met three times in summer 2020 to discuss coordination issues impacting tribal early childhood programs. The meetings were held through a collaboration between ECD, the Administration for Native Americans, and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. The Working Group resulted in a (PDF)Summary Report and Blueprint for Action (PDF). (PDF)
- Transforming Tribal Early Childhood Webinar
- In partnership with the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) hosted a webinar on July 29, 2021 to kick off an exploration of new opportunities for transforming tribal early childhood programs and systems. The American Rescue Plan (ARP) and other COVID-19 related legislation included large investments and present an unprecedented opportunity for tribal communities to develop and implement a vision to improve tribal early childhood programs and systems to better meet their needs.
- Recording
- Tribal Early Childhood Webinar Series
- The “Transforming Tribal Early Childhood” webinar kicked off a series of webinars on topics related to coordination and alignment of early childhood programs in AI/AN communities. Topics include:
- Addressing Mental Health Issues among Children, Staff, and Families (August 23, 2021)
- Family Engagement and Family Leadership (September 28, 2021)
- Promoting Equity and Celebrating Resilience, Parts 1 and 2 (November 8 and 16, 2021)
- Building and Improving Facilities for Early Care and Education (January 10, 2022)
- Professional Development Opportunities and Challenges (March 14, 2022)
- Integrating Native Language and Culture into Early Childhood Programming (April 11, 2022)
- Supporting Coordinated Data Systems
- Blending and Braiding Funding and Leveraging Policy Flexibilities
- Recordings and resources from the Tribal Early Childhood Webinar Series are available.
- The “Transforming Tribal Early Childhood” webinar kicked off a series of webinars on topics related to coordination and alignment of early childhood programs in AI/AN communities. Topics include:
- The Office of Early Childhood Development is pleased to announce the publication of the following report: Innovations in Tribal Early Childhood Programs: Findings from a Webinar Series with Practitioners, Researchers, and Policy Makers. The brief highlights findings from the Tribal Early Childhood Webinar Series , a forum for practitioners, researchers, and policymakers to showcase promising practices and dialogue on the successes and challenges of implementing high-quality, coordinated tribal early childhood services. Participants heard directly from tribal experts on innovations in American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) early childhood and family support programs on a variety of topics, including mental health, integrating Native language and culture, the workforce, facilities, parent engagement, equity, and resilience. Findings emphasized the importance of building on the strengths, cultures, and traditional practices of Indigenous communities, while finding ways to navigate federal and state policies and resources to benefit AI/AN communities. Links to the webinar series recordings, summary of the webinar content, and examples of featured innovations can also be found in the report. To access the report, click here. (PDF)
- Federal Interagency Workgroup on Tribal Early Childhood
- On May 11, 2022, the U.S. Department of the Interior released Volume 1
(PDF) of the investigative report as part of the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative
. This report brings to light the traumatic and unsettling practices that were carried out as part of the federal Indian boarding school system throughout the United States over the span of nearly two centuries.
- This Dear Colleague Letter from the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) recognizes that the impact of federal Indian boarding schools is widespread and has had long term consequences on the well-being of children and families in American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities. We also acknowledge the immense cross-generational resilience that defines these communities and the many Indigenous-led efforts to revive and preserve traditional practices and Native languages. You can read the full letter here (PDF).