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Creating Culturally Informed, Trauma Informed Schools on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation: Project AWARE

Award Number: H79SM080965
ORGANIZATION: CENTER FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
OPDIV: SAMHSA
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: HEALTH SERVICES
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/30/2018
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 09/29/2023

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Creating Culturally Informed, Trauma Informed Schools on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation: Project AWARE - The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation has experienced its disproportionate share of trauma. An author for The New York Times once described this land, home to the Oglala Lakota Nation, as little more than “a catalog of social ills: Unemployment exceeds 80 percent, poverty affects more than 90 percent of those living on the reservation and alcoholism is rampant. By some estimates, one quarter of children born on the reservation have fetal alcohol syndrome.” The students in our schools suffer from this trauma; it frequently takes precedence over academic learning. A representative sample of students who took the Adverse Childhood Experiences questionnaire found terrifying results—all who took the test identified at least one childhood trauma, and more than half identified with more than four (of twelve total). A high score such as this does not bode well; it correlates to increased drug use and alcoholism, a higher chance of perpetrating an abusive relationship, and ultimately leads to an early death. Project AWARE will change this narrative. As a partnership between three schools on the reservation (Little Wound, Crazy Horse, and American Horse) and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Telehealth program, we will expand our abilities to provide needed mental, behavioral, and cultural health support to students, but also do so in a broader framework: the Trauma Informed School Model. This project will train school staff, students, and community members to understand trauma, identify its consequences, and respond properly to demonstrations of trauma-induced mental/behavioral health issues. Indian Health Services has two full time behavioral/mental health counselors for the entire eastern half of our reservation. While our schools try to compensate, adequate response is impossible without expanded funding—this grant provides the funding. This project will include a Project Coordinator, Project Co-Coordinator, and a Community Project Manager for each site. Additionally, each school will hire (a) a Trauma-Informed School Implementation Specialist, (b) a teca kin Lakolyakel wiyokihi wicaye (to provide cultural mentorship), and (c) two to three wayawa kin slolic’iya wicaye (depending on school size) to give one-to-one support for students in crisis and provide follow-up. The Trauma-Informed School will serve as our primary implementation text, providing a proven framework for schools to follow. Incorporating cultural elements is appropriate for this model and leads to improved student outcomes. Our schools and students are consistently, negatively impacted by outsized trauma in our communities—Project AWARE changes our schools’ response to this reality. Implementation of the proven model will demonstrably change student outcomes and provide needed supports for students experiencing trauma in their lives.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2024	2021	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	000	4	2/12/2024	ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPLEMENT ( + OR - ) (DISCRETIONARY OR BLOCK AWARDS)	$0
2024	2020	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	001	3	2/12/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2023	2021	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	000	4	3/17/2023	ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPLEMENT ( + OR - ) (DISCRETIONARY OR BLOCK AWARDS)	$0
2023	2021	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	001	4	7/12/2023	ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPLEMENT ( + OR - ) (DISCRETIONARY OR BLOCK AWARDS)	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2022	2021	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	000	4	4/20/2022	ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPLEMENT ( + OR - ) (DISCRETIONARY OR BLOCK AWARDS)	$0
2022	2021	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	001	4	6/7/2022	ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPLEMENT ( + OR - ) (DISCRETIONARY OR BLOCK AWARDS)	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $3,344,189 )
2021	2021	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	000	4	7/27/2021	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$3,344,189
														Subtotal = $3,344,189

Issue Date FY: 2020 ( Subtotal = $1,617,047 )
2020	2020	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	438 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	001	3	6/2/2020	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$1,617,047
2020	2019	REDACTED DUE TO PII		KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	000	2	10/10/2019	ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPLEMENT ( + OR - ) (DISCRETIONARY OR BLOCK AWARDS)	$0
														Subtotal = $1,617,047

Issue Date FY: 2019 ( Subtotal = $1,588,566 )
2019	2019	REDACTED DUE TO PII		KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	001	2	7/31/2019	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$1,588,566
2019	2018	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	500 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	000	1	12/13/2018	ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPLEMENT ( + OR - ) (DISCRETIONARY OR BLOCK AWARDS)	$0
														Subtotal = $1,588,566

Issue Date FY: 2018 ( Subtotal = $1,602,542 )
2018	2018	LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL BOARD, INC.	500 MAIN ST	KYLE	SD	57752	OGLALA LAKOTA	USA	Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance	000	1	9/11/2018	NEW	$1,602,542
														Subtotal = $1,602,542

Grand Total All Awards = $8,152,344

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Creating Culturally Informed, Trauma Informed Schools on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation: Project AWARE

Award Number: H79SM080965

ORGANIZATION: CENTER FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

OPDIV: SAMHSA

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: HEALTH SERVICES

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/30/2018

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 09/29/2023

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