Marsha Lovato, Santo Domingo Tribe Kewa Wellness Center
At first I didn’t know what I was to be doing because the Native STAND curriculum was given to me and I didn’t have any idea what I was getting myself into with the program. As I worked and communicated with other educators, it was great that others were willing to share what and how they have been implementing Native STAND in their communities. Since our tribal program had strong collaborations with the local and neighboring schools, we decided to implement Native STAND at these three sites. Working with students at all three school was a great experience! I, too, had learned from the students as they taught me new teen vocabulary about sex which changed a lot since my days in school! We had the chance to build a great relationship, the trust they had in us as educators was strong, and all the students started to open up more. They talked about anything they wanted to talk about — Native STAND class was an open and safe place for them to learn about sensitive topics — not one student at any of the schools were left but used their voice. The Native STAND curriculum has given me the opportunity to be more confident in what I do at work, while also opening me up on how to communicate and work with students. It also taught me how to gain trust. Implementing Native STAND was extremely awesome! I’m really happy that I was the one to implement this curriculum. We will keep continuing to implement Native STAND!