In partnership with Salish Kootenai College, other tribal colleges, and the National American Indian/ Alaska Native Head Start Collaboration Office, Zero to Five Montana helped to launch an Early Childhood Tribal Language Summit in 2019 and recently formed a statewide Early Childhood Tribal Coalition. By building genuine relationships centered on what Native people need and want, early childhood advocates and tribal leaders hope to shift damaging power dynamics and help start healing historical trauma.
Tribal communities across the US and in Montana experience generational trauma due to “pervasive, systemic racism,” says Caitlin Jensen, Executive Director at Zero to Five Montana. Their rights have been continuously violated throughout history, resulting in marginalization, discrimination, and unequal access to social services. There have also been systematic attempts to erase their culture and identity, including forcing children into boarding schools where they were forbidden from speaking their native languages or honoring their cultural heritage.
Today, Jensen points to licensing, recruitment, and staff retention hurdles that impact access to and the quality of early childhood education programs for tribal communities. Significant communication gaps between tribes, state agencies, and policymakers have also created “siloed systems.” As a result, thousands of Indigenous children across Montana lack access to early childhood programs that reflect and honor their culture, language, and customs.
The early years of a child’s life are critical for development, and language and cultural awareness at a young age lay the foundation for their future. Unfortunately, tribal languages have eroded over the generations. According to Callie Parr, the Early Childhood Tribal Coordinator at Zero to Five Montana and a descendant of the Little Shell Tribe, some tribal languages are on the verge of extinction, with tribal elders predicting their languages may vanish by 2040. This loss is crucial because when languages disappear, so do vital connections to history and culture. “Language is our identity,” explains Parr.
For younger generations, learning tribal languages can help them reconnect with their lost cultural heritage. Zero to Five Montana launched a pilot program that provided grants to infant and toddler programs to help promote Native language development in classrooms and shared resources to encourage family engagement. In 2019, they also convened the first Early Childhood Tribal Language Summit hosted by Salish Kootenai College, bringing together tribal officials, policymakers, educators, and community members. According to Parr, Zero to Five Montana is planning its next Early Childhood Tribal Language Summit and working with state partners on language preservation legislation.
Zero to Five Montana also established the statewide Early Childhood Tribal Coalition, with the support of Salish Kootenai College and many other partners. The Coalition includes tribal representatives from tribes across Montana who collaborate with state agencies and organizations. Though formed just last year, the Coalition is the product of years of relationship building and direct coordination with tribes regarding their priorities, aspirations, and challenges.
The Coalition’s primary goals include building sustainable connections that will last over time, promoting Indigenous languages, traditions, and practices as essential components of early childhood education, and advocating for policies to ensure equitable funding and resources are dedicated to tribal communities. Another important goal is to strengthen partnerships and improve coordination between state partners and tribes, as well as among tribes. After conducting reservation site visits, the Zero to Five Montana team discovered there was little communication between tribes or between tribes and state early childhood agencies and organizations – likely a result of historical trauma, when communication with state agencies did not serve the tribes’ best interests. The Coalition aims to break down walls to support tribes who wish to communicate with each other and foster relationships between state partners and tribes. Increased communication can allow partners to align values and priorities while sharing knowledge, resources, and cultural understanding.
“It’s like a patchwork quilt. We’re connecting with the different areas we have in the state, and we’re learning from other successes…. We’re really a network, collaborating and looking at abundance-based community development. We can pull together by mapping and leveraging our assets and building on existing strengths,” said Melanie Sands-Snyder, a citizen of Rocky Boy and member of the Early Childhood Tribal Coalition.
The Coalition offers lessons for advocates interested in being effective, trusted partners to support early childhood tribal priorities in their state.
- Acknowledge and understand how historical trauma affects interactions with state partners, recognizing that building authentic relationships and trust requires time and dedication.
- Establish mechanisms for meaningful collaboration between states and tribes, creating long-term communication channels that can withstand changes in state and tribal leadership.
- Ensure the work is tribal-led and create a coordinator position to facilitate communication and build relationships. Each tribe has its own distinct culture, language, and traditions. A tribal coordinator can help state partners understand these distinctions and ensure tribal perspectives are not lost or ignored.
“It’s been so encouraging to watch Zero to Five’s work with tribal communities develop. They seemed to start by centering what tribes needed and wanted – preserving native languages in early care and education settings – and built genuine, two-way relationships with tribal leaders. The burgeoning trust among the Coalition leaders could only have grown out of genuine relationships,” said Mandy Ableidinger, Senior Policy Director at the Alliance for Early Success. “None of this work is quick, and Zero to Five is showing that it’s worth taking the time to do it right. We’re glad to highlight the work of the Coalition for advocates in other states who are looking to engage with tribal leaders.”
With 30 members and growing, the Coalition continues to be built and driven by tribal voices with support from dedicated allies. The first virtual kick-off last fall proved to be a resounding success, and now members are preparing for the next steps to advance their goals. Parr has begun offering training on advocacy and testimony to rally support for legislation that would boost funding and access for early childhood education in tribal communities.
Above all, the Coalition is helping to repair historic wounds. Sands-Snyder tells the story of her grandmother, who was sent to a boarding school where “what was so woven into our family was ripped away…so much of ceremony and culture and language was lost.” She continues, “This work is about bridging gaps, creating connections, and healing generations so I can have that connection back with my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren… It was essentially illegal to be us, and I am breaking that generational curse.”
