To kick off the summer of 2011, the Center for Native American Youth hosted a roundtable discussion about programs and resources available to Native youth. Key federal agency staff and representatives from national Indian organizations attended the meeting. This meeting is a second in a series, following the first gathering held on May 6th. The meetings are intended to serve as an opportunity to exchange information and improve the collaboration across agencies and organizations working with Native youth.
One of the Center’s top goals is to serve as a trusted, comprehensive resource for tribes and Native youth, and also for agencies and organizations working with Indian Country. Today’s roundtable was a subsequent step in an ongoing effort to bring together major stakeholders working on Native youth issues, to identify available resources, and to ensure that those resources are communicated to the people who need them most.
In attendance today were staff from the White House Office of Public Engagement, White House Initiative on Tribal Colleges and Universities, US Department of Agriculture, Department of Labor’s Youth Build program, the Department of Health & Human Services including the Indian Health Service and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Department of the Interior including the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education, and the Department of Justice including the Office of Justice Programs, Community Oriented Policing Services, and the Office of Violence against Women. Several Native youth interns were also in attendance as well as staff from the National Indian Youth Leadership Project.
The Center is planning the next resource roundtable for later this summer, which will highlight national Indian organizations initiatives with Native youth.
*Pictures coming soon
