American Indian and Alaska Native Children and Families

Abstract

American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children confront tremendous adversity with service systems that are under-resourced and often based on service models that are oblivious to native cultures and contexts (Gone & Trimble, 2012; Sarche & Spicer, 2008, 2012). While there is great deal of overlap between the needs of AI/AN children and families and those from other populations, here we emphasize the unique opportunities that arise for advocacy for tribes, given their direct relationship with the federal government, and for models that are informed by specific local tribal cultures. For many Americans, AI/AN issues seem to be of little contemporary relevance. AI/AN people may seem eerily absent from American society (Wilson, 1998), but AI/AN communities are rapidly growing with strong assertions of tribal sovereignty with regard to economic development, education, and health services. These dynamics shape the environment for advocacy on children’s issues and provide a unique perspective on relationships between researchers and advocacy. In the case we focus on here, the work of the American Indian and Alaska Native Head Start Research Center, research was designed to respond directly to advocacy from tribal communities.