New Strategic Advisor for Native American Affairs and Grants to Combat Meth Use

Washington D.C. – The Corporation for National and Community Service today announced two major steps to increase its commitment and support for Native American communities in using national service as a solution to tackle social and economic challenges.

Corporation COO Liz Seale told more than 1,000 tribal leaders, members, and others gathered at a conference in Billings, Mont., that the agency is bringing aboard a new senior-level Strategic Advisor for Native American Affairs and is making grants to six tribal nations to combat the growing crisis of methamphetamine use in Indian communities.

Ron Lessard, an American Indian from the Mohawk and Abenaki Tribes, will begin serving as the Strategic Advisor in September. He will be an advocate for Native America communities at the Corporation, working across all program and support units to increase Native America participation in national service and to develop and enhance programming to address the unique needs of Native American communities. Reporting directly to the COO, he will promote coordination among the agency’s programs and partners, collect information on challenges facing Native American communities, and evaluate progress. He will also be the agency’s primary liaison to American Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native communities and the organizations and federal agencies that serve them.

Lessard has a broad background dealing with federal, state and local programs in partnership with Native American communities. He has worked in support and advocacy roles across a wide range of issues including housing, health, economic development, and cultural competency. He is currently the Program Manager for Cultural Competency for the National Minority Aids Education and Training Center at Howard University College of Medicine. Previously he was appointed by the Governor of Maryland to serve as the Native American Liaison / Community Development Director for the Office of Minority Health & Health Disparities, Department of Health & Mental Hygiene. Prior to his current position, he was the Executive Director for the Baltimore American Indian Center in Baltimore, Md. He has served on the National Urban Indian Family Coalition Advisory Board and the National Planning Committee for Collaborative Regional Trainings for the Indian Health Service.

“National service is a critical resource for meeting needs in Native American communities, and Ron’s leadership will help achieve higher levels of access, impact, and effectiveness,” said Seale. “Having a senior-level champion for Native American concerns is one of the ways we are strengthening our longstanding commitment to Native American communities, and we are delighted to welcome Ron to our family.”

Seale also announced $985,885 in new Learn and Serve America grants to six tribal nations to make young people part of the solution to the meth crisis, which is wreaking devastation in Indian communities and rural areas across the U.S. The three-year grants will engage tribal youth in a variety of anti-meth efforts including participating in local methamphetamine task forces, serving as peer educators about the dangers of meth, promoting traditional culture and values, developing substance abuse awareness campaigns, and engaging in community service as a positive alternative to methamphetamine use.

“One of the best ways to fight the meth crisis is to directly engage the very young people who are most at risk,” said Learn and Serve America Director Amy Cohen. “We’ve seen it everywhere across the country – when you ask young people to serve and give them support, they can accomplish great things. This approach says to Indian youth: ‘We need you, we’re calling on you, you can be part of the solution to this crisis.”

The six tribal nations receiving the three-year grants are:

• The Chippewa Cree Tribe, in Box Elder, MT, will receive $179,280 to support an after-school family model to engage students and their parents/guardians in service-learning projects including teaching the tribal language, values, customs, history, and traditions; recreation; and drug abuse prevention information Students will also devise a public education campaign, present information at community events, and provide input to the local Methamphetamine Task Force.

• The Navajo Nation in Window Rock, AZ will receive $151,335 to engage students at Saint Michael’s Indian High School in service-learning focused on the quality of life and health. Students will carry out service-learning projects for elders such as chores and hauling wood; will learn about substance abuse prevention; will serve as mentors to their peers; and will develop a Youth Council that will work with the local Methamphetamine Task Force.

• The Yakama Tribe in Toppenish, WA will receive $147,789 to involve students from the Toppenish and McAdams School District in service-learning, youth leadership, and substance abuse prevention using the Gathering of Native Americans curriculum. On completing the program, students will serve as peer educators to prevent drug abuse in other youth and participate on a local Methamphetamine Task Force.

• The Northern Arapaho Tribe in Fort Washakie, WY, will receive $160,775 to divert high risk Arapaho Charter School students from drugs and at-risk behavior by providing leadership development training and service-learning projects such as preparing and presenting lessons and activities at the Immersion School, conducting community clean-up and clean water projects, preparing tax returns for the elders, and serving as the Youth Council to the local Indian Country Methamphetamine Task Force.

• The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, based in Talihina, OK, will receive $170,596 to engage students at Jones Academy, a residential living center for elementary and secondary school age children in service-learning. Students will set up weekly drug use prevention presentations for their peers to promote refusal skills, increase communication, allow role playing, and foster discussion. During the summer months, the students will conduct service-learning projects in their home communities. The project will also establish youth advisory councils that will participate in the local Methamphetamine Task Force.

• The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska will receive $176,110 in funding to involve students at Winnebago Public School and St. Augustine Mission School in service-learning through its YES! Project. Students will plant a community garden and harvest and distribute fruits of the garden to elders; plan and build a playground; read to and mentor their peers and Head Start students; and develop local media campaigns to promote awareness about the dangers of methamphetamine.

A 2006 survey conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs found that 74 percent of tribal police forces nationwide ranked methamphetamine as the greatest drug threat to communities, and that meth use was directly associated with other crimes including murder, domestic violence, child and elder abuse, and sexual crimes. The Indian Health Service estimates that 30 percent of American Indian youth have experimented with methamphetamines. Meth also contributes to elevated suicide rates.

“Meth is a growing crisis in Indian country, and addressing it will take a coordinated response including education, prevention, treatment, law enforcement, and the active involvement of citizens,” said Assistant Surgeon General Eric Broderick, D.D.S., M.P.H., Deputy Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). “Engaging young people in community service and inviting them to educate their peers about the dangers of meth is an innovative approach that complements the other federal resources that we are marshalling to attack this scourge in Indian communities.”

SAMSHA is leading a cross-agency HHS Indian Country Methamphetamine Initiative that is supporting a number of efforts including information and outreach campaigns and sharing best practices. The new service-learning grants build upon past efforts by the Corporation to work with HHS to combat meth use in tribal communities. Last year, the Corporation joined the HHS Administration for Native Americans to launch the “1,000 Ways to Stop Abuse” campaign to distribute $1,000 mini-grants through the National Society for American Indian Elderly to groups working to prevent substance abuse and domestic violence.

The new grants also complement anti-meth efforts by the National Council on American Indians (NCAI), which has issued a national call to action to curb meth use. “Addressing the economic and social challenges we face as Native people is crucial to maintaining tribal sovereignty and building strong, healthy Native communities,” said NCAI President Joe A. Garcia. “This announcement proves that the Corporation for National and Community Service is a solid partner in our efforts. I applaud the appointment of Mr. Lessard and thank the National Service for helping our communities fight methamphetamine abuse. Winning the war against meth is a top priority for NCAI and we truly appreciate the resources from the National Service to help us in this effort.”

Learn and Serve America supports service-learning in schools, higher education institutions, and community-based organizations across the country. Service-learning is a method of teaching and learning that connects classroom lessons with meaningful service to the community. Since its inception, Learn and Serve America has funded more than 140 grant awards to tribal entities. Last year, more than 11,700 Native Americans served as Learn and Serve America participants through 622 tribal and non-tribal programs.

Indian tribes and organizations that support Native American communities have been successfully drawing upon national service resources to meet education, environmental, health, and other social needs for more than 40 years. This year, the Corporation is investing approximately $12.5 million to support nearly 150 Tribal-related projects in 33 states involving more than 37,000 national service participants through its programs. For more information, please click here.

The Corporation for National and Community Service improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. Each year the Corporation engages more than four million Americans of all ages and backgrounds in service to meet local needs through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, VISTA, NCCC, and Learn and Serve America programs. For more information, visit http://www.nationalservice.gov.

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