iwri newsletter 1st quarter 2013

Indigenous Wellness Research Institute National Center of Excellence

Newsletter - Issue 7 - April 2013

To support the inherent rights of Indigenous peoples to achieve full and complete health and wellness by collaborating in decolonizing research and knowledge building and sharing.

To marshal community, tribal, academic, and governmental resources toward innovative, culture-centered, interdisciplinary, collaborative social and behavioral research and education.

IWRI’s Vision

IWRI’s Mission

As Director of the Indigenous Wellness Research Center (IWRI), I am humbled and honored to announce that we were awarded a National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) Comprehensive Center of Excellence grant in September 2012. This extremely competitive, 5-year, $5 million grant would never have been awarded to IWRI without the steadfast support

and goodwill of our tribal community partners and our

academic allies. The funding will allow IWRI to increase its capacity to further its overarching goal of improving American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) health and eliminate health disparities through the following four aims: 1. Develop an integrated, comprehensive, and centralized trans-disciplinary research infrastructure that builds on the successes of IWRI’s research, training activities, and community capacity building; 2. Cultivate existing and establish new innovative partnerships with AIAN tribal communities and other AIAN organizations to facilitate truly collaborative research; 3. Develop new and enhance existing research training activities at IWRI that prepare researchers to conduct scientifically rigorous

and culturally grounded health research; and 4. Strengthen and consolidate AIAN engagement, outreach and institutional partnerships. To accomplish the four aims, the grant funds the establishment of four “Cores”: (1) Administrative, (2) Research, (3) Research Education and Training, and (4) Community Engagement and Outreach. This inaugural quarterly newsletter is one product of the National Center of Excellence funding. We hope to inform and engage our audience, which ranges from local tribal communities, to our University of Washington partners and other academic institutions, to federal funding agencies, to indigenous and allied partners across this country and across the ocean.

Welcome! IWRI’s First Quarterly Newsletter as a Center of ExcellenceBy: Karina Walters, PhD (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma)

Supported by funding from the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number P60MD006909



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IWRI Travels to Australia and Aotearoa (New Zealand)

Pounamu Stone (Greenstone), a sacred healing stone of Aotearoa.

Māori children performing Kapa haka (dance) in Māori regalia at a regional competition.

Sunrise at Pakowhai Marae- Gisborne, New ZealandCultural sharing with Māori friends and IWRI Native

American research partners.

IWRI and friends ready to go to the International Network of Indigenous Health Knowledge and

Development Conference in Brisbane, Australia.



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Weaving flax, an important plant to Māori. This is an activity Māori never do solo. Done with family and friends, it brings people together with a shared purpose.

The IWRI travelers and the local marae community gesture the Mean Māori, Mean (Sweet or Awesome).

Painting of the female guardian spirit, Hineteiwaiwa, holding a woman giving birth, by the artist Robyn Kahukiwa. She wears a tiki, which is said in one tribal tradition to have been given to her by Tane to assist with conception. Behind her are Hine-Korako and Rona-Whakamau-Tai, who have important associations with birth in Māori tradition. Source: Ms. Christine Waitai-Rapana.

Photos and descriptions courtesy of Derek Jennings, Tetana Oguara, Chris Charles and Christine Waitai-Rapana.



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planning for the walk was to map the original route. This involved researching historical maps and documents, often

using military records, so participants could walk as closely as possible along the original trail. While participants in the Yappalli walk came from various backgrounds, they found common ground and developed strong bonds as they walked, talked, and learned Choctaw words and history. The youngest member walking the trail described

the experience and desire to become more involved in her tribal community. That

means keeping her tribal ties strong, maintaining a strong tribal identity, and fostering a renewed sense that anything is possible for the health and future of her people.

In June of 2012, a small group from the University of Washington’s Indigenous Wellness Research Institute (IWRI) and Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma walked the historical “Trail of Tears.” The project was a partnership between Choctaw Nation and IWRI and was named “Yappalli,” meaning “to walk slowly and softly” in the Choctaw language. The group was comprised of tribal members from Choctaw Nation, an Indigenous person from the Tluku tribe in Taiwan, and other Native and non-Native IWRI staff, students, and supporters. The goal was to connect culturally with the space to discuss and pledge to the health of future Choctaw generations. During the 1830s, five tribes from the Southeastern U.S. walked The Trail of Tears to Oklahoma: Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw, Cherokee, and Seminole, as part of the Indian Removal Act. The Yappalli group traveled more than 20 miles per day. They walked eight to ten miles a day and the rest was traveled by vehicle. Although the walk was a way for the participants to come together as a group by

Reclaiming the Trail of Tears: Yappalli Project 2012

reconnecting and reclaiming the history of the trail, the journey’s goal was to explore ancestral visions of health and explore the

Trail as a place where participants could reconnect with those visions. One of the necessary activities in

By Katie Schultz & Tiffany St. Claire



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The Indigenous Wellness Research Institute (IWRI), would like to take a moment and recognize the retirement of Denny Hurtado. Mr. Hurtado, is an enrolled member of the Skokomish Indian Tribe and formerly held the position as its tribal chairman. He is retiring from the Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction as the Director of Indian Education, a position he has held for 12 years. Mr. Hurtado, has worked with 29 of the tribes that reside here in Washington State and led the creation and start of a groundbreaking curriculum geared towards educators in elementary, middle and high schools called, “Since Time Immemorial: Tribal Sovereignty in Washington State.” Mr. Hurtado, hopes to teach students that “Indians had sovereignty before signing treaties with the U.S.; they have their own tribal governments and have the power and authority to govern their own people and land.” With the influence of Native American educators, like Denny Hurtado, Native students can grow and feel they have a Native community that supports them in both place identity and curriculum. This allows students to see they have a “living” space among the academic community that can contribute to their voices surrounding contemporary issues in Native American education. Thank you, Denny Hurtado, for your pioneering efforts, leadership, passion and dedication in American Indian education!

Director of Indian Education for Washington State Retires Kyle Tiffany expressed feelings of “wanting

to move people,” encourage and support them to change their lives while walking the trail. Physically pushing themselves, beginning and ending with

cultural teachings and really reflecting on diet and exercise, presented an opportunity for participants to make meaningful, healthful changes in their lives. The project brought together not only Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma members but others as well, creating and discovering what it means to make a community. Currently, members of the Yappalli research team are conducting data analysis on interviews and focus groups conducted before, during and after the walk in order to illuminate Choctaw-specific views of health. The goal of these analyses are to inform health promotion efforts and to begin to plan ahead for future walks.

By Tiffany St. Claire

Yappalli Project, continued



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Building Capacity in Indigenous Research: the IHART and ISMART Programs

Two research training programs at IWRI are drawing up-and-coming scholars and researchers from around the country: IHART and ISMART. These programs were created to help Native scholars work on their own research projects with the guidance of a mentor. Indigenous HIV/AIDS Research Training program (IHART) allows Indigenous students and scholars to conduct their own research in the area of HIV/AIDS and mental health within indigenous communities. The Indigenous Substance Abuse, Medicines, and Addictions Research Training (ISMART) program is a mentorship program that allows scholars of indigenous backgrounds to research in the areas of substance abuse, medicines and addictions within their indigenous communities. IHART is a two-year mentorship and training program. The program is currently in its fourth year of a five-year grant. It is directed by Karina Walters, MSW, PhD and Bonnie Duran, DrPH (Coushatta-Opelousas) and funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) R25MHO84565. The program is directed by Meg M. MacDonald, PhD. The primary goal is to

encourage Native American researchers to start their own research projects in tribal communities. Up to 14 fellows total are selected in five years for this two-year training program. During the two-year training program, two cohorts of four to five scholars will go through the program simultaneously. The program gives the scholars access to experienced scientific mentors who will help them in their own individualized research and grant-making processes. The benefits to tribes and fellows from this program are many. Fellows will gain through fruitful experience and knowledge provided by the mentorship and guidance of experienced scientists to further benefit their scholarly studies. The hope is to encourage Native scholars to gain research experience and the skills to apply for grant monies to further their research, which in turn would benefit Indigenous communities.

As reported by Karina Walters, “The IHART fellows have published more than 15 articles in peer-reviewed journals and submitted, or been directly involved in, two NIH research grant proposals, with more under development.” The current

and growing success of the IHART program has deepened relationships between tribal communities and organizations. Longer-lasting benefits can be expected as Native researchers address HIV/AIDS in culturally-appropriate methodologies. The Indigenous Substance Abuse, Medicines, and Addictions Research Training (ISMART) program is a 12-month fellowship. It is a structured mentored training program that offers seed funding for fellows to support their research. The research the scholars will conduct benefits

tribal communities by not only gaining awareness of such issues as substance abuse and other addictions, but also to foster knowledge which will help

tribes address the effects of these disparities on Indigenous peoples’ health. Similar to IHART, the ISMART fellows will receive guidance from mentors to develop a

By Tiffany St. Claire



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from Idaho but have lived in the Puget Sound region since 1991, and I love it here. I have an undergrad-uate degree in Psychology, a Master’s in Public Health – Epidemiology, and my Naturopathic Doctorate degree. The common thread linking all of these educational pursuits is my desire to empower individuals and communities to optimize health-promoting behavior effectively and in a manner that is respectful of beliefs, culture, and environment. When I’m not at my workstation in Tulalip, I enjoy skiing at Steven’s Pass, training for my second sprint triathlon, spend-ing time with family, and enjoying my friends while playing music, discussing books, or catching up over a potluck. A great passion is travel; my family hosted many foreign exchange students when I was growing up and I was also an exchange student to Germany, and studied abroad in England.I’m thrilled to join the IWRI team as a Project Director on the Healthy Hearts 2 project at Tulalip. My name is Cam Solomon. I am IWRI’s new Data Analyst/Data Manager for the IWRI-NoCE. I have a wonderful family,

IWRI has indeed grown signifi-cantly since its inception and thus I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you the following bios for our new staff: Nicole Fossos-Wong is a new member of the Sacred Journey Project Team. Nicole grew up in the Seattle area and briefly lived in Austin, TX before returning to Seattle last spring. Her passions in life are cooking, enjoying the outdoors, and spending time with her family and Golden Retriever, Charlie. She and her husband are expecting their first child, a daughter, later this spring. She is very excited to take on the new adventure of becoming a parent. Nicole joined the University of Washington as a staff member in 2005 and has worked in the research areas of trauma, substance use and risk prevention and intervention since that time. She will serve as a Project Coordinator and will be assisting in the cultural adaptation of the Cognitive Processing Therapy Treatment Manual for use with young women in the Yakama Nation and in carrying out the pilot study this fall.

My name is Rachelle McCarty, ND MPH. I’m originally

New Personnel at IWRI

research and grant/publishing plan to assist in their scholarly endeavors. With the development of a cohort of AIAN substance abuse and addiction research scientists, ISMART would provide a unique opportunity to support and engage AIAN scholars in substance abuse and addictions research. Directed by Karina Walters and Tessa Evans-Campbell, MSW, PhD (Snohomish), the program’s long-term outlook is to help eliminate substance abuse and related health disparities among Native communities allowing them to find optimal health and wellness. Anastasia Ramey, MSW (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians) is project director for the ISMART program. The ISMART program is being funded for one year. Five Native scholars have been selected for the program cycle, which lasts 12 months. This program is made possible through funding by the National Institutes of Health grant P60MD006909. Our long-nurtured relationships with the tribal communities and organizations will enhance the success of ISMART participants and the ISMART program.

IHART and ISMART continued

By Tetana Oguara



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on the Healthy Hearts 2 project, also based at Tulalip. She has a 6-month-old son named Leo who she describes as amazing and her greatest blessing. In her free time (when she can find any), she enjoys playing and watching basketball. Chuan Zhou – Dr. Zhou has worked with Dr. Bonnie Duran and the Center for Indigenous Health Research with the National Congress of American Indians for several years as a statistician. He is a Research Associate Professor with the Department of Pediatrics and Health Services here at the University of Washington. As a member of the IWRI-NoCE, he will continue to provide his statistical expertise to all of our Center’s research projects.

Please give a warm wel-come to these team members - we are glad to have you as a part of our IWRI National Center of Excellence family!

a wife, Amy, and a 5-year-old boy named West, who are my main focus in life. I have a number of interests, including biking, hiking, skiing, camping and anything else that gets me out into the woods and mountains. I am starting to get involved with urban infra-structure to improve biking and pedestrian experiences, to provide more health, more happiness, and a better city and world. In particu-lar, I’m working with a Greenways group up in my sidewalk-less community in Lake City, to try to provide ways for folks to get around without cars, if that’s what they choose. Familiar faces, continuing

IWRI-NoCE Staff: Michelle Tiedeman – Ms. Tiedeman, a member of the Alutiiq tribe, gradu-ated from the University of Washington with a degree in Psychology

and has been working with IWRI since 2009 as a Research Coordinator on the original Healthy Hearts project based at Tulalip. She will continue this role

New Personnel at IWRI, continued

May 2013

Friday, May 3, 2013Native Organization of Indigenous Scholars 12th Annual Symposium

Thu-Fri, May 9-10, 2013Native College Days IWRI & UW Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity

Wed-Fri, May 22-24, 2013IWRI Vision to Action Partnership SummitSuquamish Lodge

Mon-Thu, May 13-16, 2013Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians Mid-Year ConferenceAirway Heights (Spokane), WA

Events Calendar

Wednesday, May 1, 2013Indigenous Foods ConferenceUW Kane Hall

For more info on any of these events please visit our events calendar http://news.iwri.org

Mon-Thu, June 27-27, 2013National Congress of American Indians Mid-Year ConferenceReno, NV

June 2013



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As an Indigenous person, I was recently reminded that we are connected in so many ways to our relatives beyond the borders of Indian Country or any other country. On November 27, 2013, the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute was honored to act as host for a group of Australian Aboriginal health career students from the University of Newcastle’s Wollotuka School of Aboriginal Studies. Our guests are studying to become doctors, teachers, nutritionists and social workers. They came from places like the islands of the Torres Strait, the desert and the rain-forest. They represented indigenous peoples of Kamilaroi, Wiradjui, Bundjalung, Kala Kawaw Ya and others. What began as a simple request for a dinner with Dr. Terry Maresca (Mohawk) and me to share stories became two full days of experiences I won’t soon forget. We brought the students to the Schools of Medicine,

Dentistry, Pharmacy, the College of Education and had lunch in our IWRI

space at the School of Social Work. The students were amazed at the similarities in the health care system, disease, and access to culturally-based education and curriculum. They were truly shocked to find American Indians and Alaska Natives mirroring the healthcare challenges that they face halfway around the planet.

Our hope was that the students knew they were not alone in the uphill battle that Indigenous students, staff,

and faculty face in a homogeneous health care field. Emotions shifted, not at Turtle’s pace but rather like the swift flitting movements of Hummingbird. One moment we were all feeling heavy with the isolation of being Indigenous people in health care, and the next a sense of unity. When we sat

down to share a meal, I realized how special it is that we have space at IWRI: A place within an academic institution where the room is not sterile, where the fire alarm doesn’t go off for the smell of sweet grass

burning and where the important act of sharing a meal together creates family.

We learned so much from these beautiful people. They reminded us that the work we do at IWRI is important to all the world’s indigenous communities. We need healing and acceptance from the impact of colonization. When Terry and I introduced ourselves (in the storyteller role), we acknowledged our lineage and where we came from. It was the homogenizing of culture and community we heard from the students when they introduced themselves. By the end of their time with us, they felt safe to acknowledge where they came from and who they are. The students said they felt like they “were part of the fami-ly.” They even seemed surprised

to feel that way. I’m glad that they were able to find family halfway across the planet and I am proud of each and every one of those students and the difficult path they

have chosen. They will be amaz-ing teachers, doctors, health care professionals, and more than that, leaders within their communities.

Students from the University of Newcastle’s Wollotuka School of Aboriginal Studies Visit IWRIBy Polly Olsen



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IWRI’s 2013 Graduates

Osiyo! I am of Cher-okee, Irish and English descent, growing up mostly in Iowa in a moder-ately urban setting. I moved to Washington in 1994 after graduating from the University of Iowa where I majored in anthro-pology and women’s studies. One of my first jobs in Washington was with the Native American Science Outreach Network at the University of Washington, a middle and high school pipeline project focused on culturally relevant science curriculum and peer-men-torship for Native youth entering “Science, Technology, Engineering and Math” fields. I am a non-tradi-tional graduate student returning to school after raising my daughter and working for many years as an administrator in the medical field, then as a program director and part-time instructor in the community college arena, where I also advised the Native American student association for about ten years. My concerns regarding institutional barriers for Native students steered me in the direc-tion of social work. I entered the Masters in Social Work Extended Degree Program in fall of 2010. My studies at the School of Social

Work have centered on multi-gen-erational health and wellness, with a particular focus on indigenous health and community resilience. In 2012, I was honored to have the opportunity to work with the Tulalip Office of Civil Legal Aid to complete my foundation practicum. My experience there was invaluable and I am forever grateful! I joined IWRI in fall 2012 to complete the advanced practicum. My experi-ence at IWRI has been a refreshing change where Native perspectives are not just included and respected but are at the forefront of every-thing we do. The staff and faculty are amazing, doing revolutionary work that is inspiring. As a young person with mixed identity, born in the midst of the civil rights movement, it was often difficult to navigate the politics of race going on around me, even within my own family. I am grateful for the elders, my teachers and mentors who have taught me so much and have encouraged me through the years to persevere, stay grounded and continue to learn and develop with an open heart and open mind. I credit their mentorship for getting me to where I am now; ready to graduate this June — looking toward the future. I am excited to continue my journey with a renewed focus and commitment to the health and wellbeing of all indigenous peoples. Wa-do! to everyone who has supported me in this endeavor.

Kerrie Sumner MurphyO si yo, dia duit, keshi, Hey, y’all! (Hello.) My name is Jessica Lusk and I am of Eastern Cherokee, Irish, Zuni, Dutch, etc. descent, but spent most of childhood living in Austin, Texas (hence the Hey, y’all). Growing up in Texas, my childhood was filled with the experiences of living in a family burdened by a multi-genera-tional history of poverty, abuse, and neglect. Apart from a way to get a better job, my interest in education began as an attempt to understand these experiences; but as I began to learn about the multitude of complex environmental and social contextual factors contributing to my background, I found that my compassion and empathy for others had deepened. As a result, I entered the UW’s Master of Social Work program in the fall of 2011, focusing on developing a practice working with children, youth, and families. I can’t say that being a “non traditional student” (a single mother in my 30s with two girls) and having to navigate the college system has been easy, or for that matter, practical. At times being in a classroom learning about the impacts of poverty, discrimination,

Jessica Lusk



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and cultural genocide on individuals and families brings up very difficult memories and really hard emotions. Being at IWRI this last year of a very long and hard 8-year journey has been a blessing. The staff and faculty are not only doing amazing work, they have also become a sort of “safe haven” for me, people I can turn to for support when “it all just becomes too much.” Yet somehow, I found the strength, courage, and support to make it doable, and in just a few short weeks I will be the first person from my family to have a college degree, and a Master’s to boot! My hopes are that after graduation, I will continue my practice with youth and families, and more importantly, have my two girls to pursue their own paths.

Tiffany St. ClaireI am an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. I am mostly French-Ca-nadian, Native and one quarter Norwegian. My dad’s family is from Dunseith, North Dakota and my mom’s family is from the Seattle area. I am the only one of four siblings born outside of the Turtle Mountain reservation.

Last year I learned that my great-grandfather’s real name was François,

that my grandparents were native French speakers and that my dad was taught by the father of Louise Erdrich’s (currently one of the most critically-acclaimed, Native American authors) at a boarding school in North Dakota. I am very honored to be graduating from the University of Washington with a Bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis in Language and Literature. Gradu-ating this June is a huge milestone, as I am the first to graduate from college in my family. As a child, I struggled tremendously with read-ing, writing and math and was told I wouldn’t be smart enough to go to college. I am proud to be a UW Husky, let alone a college graduate. Interning at IWRI has been an excellent learning experience in many ways. The biggest challenge has been writing for a variety of people and their important research projects. These talented academics put their heart into their work and conveying that has been an enjoyable challenge. Simply reading their research and listening to them explain their projects only scratches the surface. At IWRI, I have found a sense of community and have learned more about my own tribe and myself. That new-found knowledge has empowered me to consider Tribal law as a fu-ture academic endeavor. Although it has taken me 14 years to get to the UW, and has been anything but easy being married with two little girls, it has been very rewarding and worth the effort.

IWRI’s 2013 GraduatesIWRI FacultyKarina L. Walters, PhD (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma)William P. & Ruth Gerberding University ProfessorPrincipal InvestigatorDirector - IWRI

Tessa Evans-Campbell, PhD (Snohomish Tribe of Indians)Associate Director - IWRIDirector, IWRI Center for Indigenous Child & Family Research; Research Training & Education Core

Bonnie Duran, DrPH (Opelousas/Coushatta)Director - IWRI Center for Indigenous Health Research; Community Engagement and Outreach Core

Cynthia Pearson, PhD(Hungarian Jewish ally)Associate Director - IWRI Research Core

David Takeuchi, PhD (Japanese American ally)Director - IWRI Research Core

IWRI Newsletter StaffChris Charles (Cowichan/Nanaimo/Duwamish)Media & Technology Division DirectorLeo Egashira(Japanese American ally)Research Coordinator/IWRI EditorMeg MacDonald(White Ally)IHART Director/IWRI Editor

Tiffany St. Claire(Turtle Mountain Chippewa)Writing InternKyle Tiffany(Japanese American Hapa ally)Research Coordinator

IWRI’s Newsletter Team

Tetana Oguara(Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation)Administrative Director IWRI Admin. Core


Box 354900Seattle, WA98195USAwww.iwri.org

iwri newsletter 1st quarter 2013

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