Washington Community and Technical Colleges American Indian Indigenous Studies Advisory Board (WCAAB)
Calendar
Purpose
The primary responsibility of the Washington Community and Technical Colleges American Indian Indigenous Studies Advisory Board (WCAAB) is to develop a statewide community and technical colleges strategic plan. Through sustainable Government to Government (G2G) relations and tribal consultation, this plan will expand space for Indigenous knowledges throughout the following educational pathways:
- Academic transfer
- Basic adult education
- Career and technical education
- Workforce development
To address American Indian disparities in higher education, our primary aim is to expand pathways for Tribal students, adults, and workforce development within Washington's higher education opportunities. This includes building institutional capacity to increase American Indian knowledge through curriculum development and the recruitment of American Indian faculty and staff. We work to create space for Tribal Community Scholars and Wisdom Keepers in traditional western academy so that all faculty, staff, students, and communities will learn local history, governance, and culture. To realize place-based knowledge is to learn the historical context from local Tribes and their connections to the land where we work, live, and play.
Recruitment Goal
In one year, we recruited 26 community educators from Washington's community and technical colleges, universities, Indigenous faculty, higher education advisory professionals, American Indian K-12 education organizations, Tribal business and health sectors, and Tribal leaders.
COLLECTIVELY, WCAAB has adopted advisory board bylaws and created a statewide comprehensive strategic plan. We look forward to reducing racial inequities, promoting social justice initiatives, and facilitating productive relationships between Washington’s 34 community and technical colleges and 29 Federally Recognized Tribes.
Board Role | Name | Title/Organization | |
---|---|---|---|
Co-Chair Elect | Robert Britten | Executive Director, Diversity and Equity Officers Commission (DEOC), Lake Washington Institute of Technology | robert.britten@lwtech.edu |
Co-Chair Elect |
Kris Peters |
Chairman of Squaxin Island Tribe, Evergreen State College Board of Trustees | kpeters@squaxin.us |
Co-Member-At-Large | Vik Bahl | Tenured English Faculty, Green River College | vbahl@greenriver.edu |
Co-Member-At-Large | Maya Esquivido-Strom (Nor Rel Muk & Hupa) | Tribal Government Affairs Director; State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) | mesquivido@sbctc.edu |
Name | Title | Organization | |
---|---|---|---|
Anna Armstrong (Kalispel) |
Board Member & Director |
Washington State Indian Education Association (WSIEA) Director of Education at Kalispel Tribe |
aarmstrong@kalispeltribe.com |
Chairman Leonard Forsman (Suquamish) | Chairman of The Suquamish Tribe; President |
Tribal Leaders Congress |
lforsman@suquamish.nsn.us |
Carli Schiffner | President |
Grays Harbor College |
carli.schiffner@ghc.edu |
John Sirois (Confederate Tribes of the Colville) | Traditional Territories | Confederated Tribes of the Colville | john.sirois.adm@colvilletribes.com |
Denise Bill (Muckleshoot) |
Director | Muckleshoot Tribal College | denise.bill@muckleshoot.nsn.us |
Kady Titus (Koyukon Athabascan) | State Board Member; Koyukon Athabascan | State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) | kadytitus@aol.com |
Chris Bailey | Interim Executive Director | State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) | cbailey@sbctc.edu |
Yoshiko Harden | President | Renton Technical College | yharden@rtc.edu |
Kerry Levett | Vice President of Instruction | Instruction Commission (IC), Cascadia College | klevett@cascadia.edu |
Victor Begay (Navajo) | American Indian & Indigenous Studies Faculty & Tribal Liason | Cascadia Community College | vbegay@cascadia.edu |
Tanya Powers | Associate Dean | BAS and Workforce Pathways, Highline Community College | tpowers@highline.edu |
Monica Wilson | Director | Student Success Center and Strategic Initiatives, State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) | mwilson@sbctc.edu |
MarcusAntonio Gunn | Policy Associate of EDI and Barrier Mitigation | Basic Education for Adults, State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) | magunn@sbctc.edu |
Irene Shaver | Climate Solutions Program Manager | Tribal Government Affairs Office, State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) | Ishaver@sbctc.edu |
Leander Yazzie (Navajo) | Tribal Liaison | University of Washington Tacoma | yazzil@uw.edu |
Naomi Bender (Quechua) | Director of Tribal Relations | Spokane College | naomi.bender@ccs.spokane.edu |
Contacts
Maya Esquivido-Strom
Interim Director, Tribal Government Affairs
mesquivido@sbctc.edu
360-704-3986
Courtnay Llacuna
Administrative Assistant
cllacuna@sbctc.edu
360-704-4317