La Conner Schools

Native American Education Programs and Resources

GENERAL INFORMATION

La Conner School District benefits greatly from strong involvement from the Swinomish Tribe.  Each grade has its own dedicated Education Support Advocate.   You can find their names here on our educational partners page.   ESA's are supervised by Loran James.   Loran is part of the Swinomish Education Department, with Michael Vendiola as the director.   Loran and Michael meet with district administration regularly.   In addition, the district and the tribe have agreed to have three consultations per year.  (See the Indian Policies and Procedures under Impact Aid below.)

IMPACT AID

Because the Swinomish Reservation is within the boundaries of our school district, we qualify for impact aid.   To qualify for Impact Aid we need to have public Indian Policies and Procedures.   See our most recent document here.  (IPP from the winter 2021 application.) 

INDIAN EDUCATION GRANT (Title VI)

When students register at La Conner School District parents fill out an ED506 form from the United States Department of Education.   Students who have at least a grandparent who is an enrolled tribal member of a federally recognized tribe are counted to qualify for this Title VI grant.  This grant is used to fund the Lushootseed Language and Culture Class, and other cultural activities, such as our indigenous science class, Between Two Worlds. 

MIGRANT (TITLE IC)

The majority of migrant qualified students in La Conner School District are Native American students.    These students qualify for fishing, crabbing, or berry picking for economic reasons that take them beyond the school district boundaries.   Heidi Darling is our Migrant Student Advocate and recruiter.   If you think you might qualify, or if you have an issue with school you think she might be able to help with, please contact her.   You can find her page here.   Heidi also recruits for programs like Native Voices and Dare to Dream, an early summer college experience for high school students.

NATIVE AMERICAN PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE (NAPAC)

A group of Native American Parents meet monthly on the first Wednesday of the month at 6:30.   For the 2020-21 school year, here is a list of the topics.   A leadership team often meets briefly in between these meetings.   All meetings can be accessed through this zoom link, or throught the calendar on the main district web page.

October 7, 2020  Remote Learning Needs and School Opening Debrief  

November 4, 2020  Heather Milliren - Parent Involvement and Parent to Parent 

December 2, 2020 

January 6, 2021   Dean Dan - Swinomish History Night and the Point Elliott Treaty. IPP review.   

February 3, 2021   Ms. Huscher and Science Night.  Ms. Huscher demonstrates the concept of density.

March 3, 2021   Dean Dan - Skagit  History Museum night.  

April 14, 2021  Christine Valdez -  Students and Substance Abuse.  Nurse resources?  Hearing on Indian Education Plan.

May 5, 2021  Program review, and planning for next year.  Data  

June 2, 2021   End of year celebration and reflection.   

Meeting notes