Transforming Tomorrow Youth Program

Native American Fatherhood and Families Association (NAFFA) is excited to launch its Transforming Tomorrow Youth Program as a way to impactfully prevent and reduce suicidal behavior and substance misuse, reduce the impact of trauma, and promote mental health among American Indian youth.

This new model has been developed in direct conjunction with tribal health leaders and is a seamless extension of the training programs NAFFA has offered for over 20 years, benefitting over 300 tribes nationwide.

Through the funding from SAMHSA, NAFFA will run its Transforming Tomorrow Youth program alongside its traditional training offerings. For example, in recent months NAFFA has certified over 100 facilitators in its latest New Mexico, Hawaii, and Arizona in-person trainings, with virtual participation nationwide, adding to a group of over 2000 NAFFA-trained facilitators in the United States and Canada.

Facilitators have been trained and certified in NAFFA’s four culturally competent curricula: Fatherhood Is Sacred® Motherhood Is Sacred® (FIS/MIS), Linking Generations by Strengthening Relationships®, Addressing Family Violence & Abuse© and Suicide Prevention©, developed by NAFFA’s founder, Albert Pooley, based on his experience as a Native American, father, husband, and Marriage and Family Therapist. Facilitators tailor and deliver curricula in a variety of settings, such as behavioral health centers, criminal justice systems, state aid programs, human services, treatment centers, schools, and many more programs, agencies, and services. 

While these training programs have also been tailored and offered to youth in the past, Transforming Tomorrow goes beyond basic curriculum delivery. Specifically, while adults/parents attend NAFFA training in one room, youth and young adults enrolled in Transforming Tomorrow will receive coordinated treatment in an adjacent location under the direction of a masters’ level professional whose purpose is to keep youth safe in working through the therapy process. This format has the flexibility of in-person, virtual, or hybrid options, tailored to the needs of participating youth and young adults. Fully virtual offerings are popular nationwide, but tribes have expressed aversion to virtual programming and are drawn to the flexible nature of NAFFA’s program, allowing for a best fit for Native American youth.  

As part of the Transforming Tomorrow program, NAFFA will initiate a needs assessment process within one month of award receipt by forming a multidisciplinary team comprising mental health professionals, community leaders, youth advocates, and cultural experts. This team will collaborate to design a comprehensive assessment tool tailored to the unique cultural and contextual aspects of the Native American community, building on NAFFA’s existing expertise with this underserved population. The assessment will collaborate with existing efforts among tribal partners and include qualitative and quantitative data collection methods such as surveys, focus group discussions, individual interviews, and review of existing literature and data sources. NAFFA will ensure active participation and engagement from community members throughout the assessment process, employing culturally sensitive approaches to gather insights into mental health challenges, social determinants of health, historical trauma, and cultural strengths. Following data collection, NAFFA will analyze the findings to identify key priorities, gaps, and needs within the community, which will inform the delivery of the counseling program. 

Within 6 months of funding, NAFFA will coordinate with its tribal partners to plan and facilitate a Community Readiness Assessment. The team will familiarize themselves with the Community Readiness Model developed by the Tri-Ethnic Center for Prevention Research for framework. The team will engage key stakeholders within the Native American community, including tribal leaders, elders, youth representatives, service providers, and other community members. This engagement will involve building relationships, fostering trust, and gaining insights into the community's values, priorities, and concerns. NAFFA will utilize appropriate assessment tools in line with the aforementioned model and the data collection plan in Section D. Surveys may be distributed electronically or in person, while interviews and focus groups will provide opportunities for in-depth discussions and qualitative insights. Data analysis will involve scoring responses, identifying themes, and categorizing readiness levels based on the Community Readiness Model's stages (e.g., denial, resistance, exploration, commitment); appropriate reports will be generated and circulated. NAFFA will collaborate with stakeholders to develop an action plan for leveraging community strengths and addressing identified gaps in readiness. By conducting a thorough Community Readiness Assessment, NAFFA aims to ensure that its youth counseling program is tailored to the specific needs and context of the Native American community, with a strong foundation of community support and readiness for change. 

NAFFA Awarded Funds for Transforming Tomorrow’s Youth

Through the generous donation of Cook Native American Ministries     Foundation (CNAMC), Native American Fatherhood and Families Association (NAFFA) has been awarded $5,000 to sponsor facilitators to be trained in the new youth program Transforming Tomorrow’s Youth in the  Fort Defiance area of the Navajo Reservation.

NAFFA is deeply committed to advancing our work within the youth of the Indigenous urban and rural communities. This funding will allow three youth leaders to be trained in NAFFA’s new  youth program which impactfully can prevent and reduce suicidal behavior and substance misuse, reduce the impact of trauma, and promote mental health among American Indian youth. This new model has been    developed in direct conjunction with tribal health leaders and is a seamless extension of the training programs . NAFFA is very grateful for the funding given from the Cook Native American Ministries Foundation.

For more information on CNAMC, see website: www.cooknam.org.

 NAFFA is thrilled for the opportunity to help our youth strengthen their future and their community. For more information, please email me at jillm@aznaffa.org or call the office 480-833-5007.