Although Native Americans have owned and started the fewest small businesses of all U.S. minority groups, entrepreneurship is considered to be an efficient tool for alleviating their economic problems. Barriers to Native American entrepreneurship include poverty, scarce start-up capital, poor access to business education and technical assistance,…

A combined outreach and research initiative addressed the participation of Native American business owners in electronic commerce. E-commerce can provide many benefits to producers and consumers but does not ensure unmitigated economic success. It is only one part of a development process leading to achievement of tribes' broader social goals,…

This study addresses Arizona dropout rates for individual schools, school districts, counties, and the state categorized by grade, gender, and ethnicity. In addition, the data include actual student enrollment and dropout counts. Dropout rates are reported for grades 7 through 12 based on a calendar year that begins the first day of summer recess…

This book about teaching virtues is based on a fundamental American Indian view that sees the universe as intimate relationships of living things that are vitally affected by attributes called universal virtues. These virtues cross all boundaries and cannot be "taught" in isolation. They are woven into all subjects that are worth…

This document contains the first eight issues of "Rural Roots"--two published in 2000 and six published bimonthly in 2001. A newsletter of the Rural School and Community Trust, "Rural Roots" provides news, information, and commentary from the Rural Trust and highlights the wide variety of place-based education work happening in…

WIC, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, is a federal program operated through state and local agencies. American Indian tribal organizations administer WIC programs on tribal lands. There are currently 32 tribal WIC programs. Tribes often contribute significant resources of their own in the form of office…

This theme issue focuses on family-centered practices and policies for service delivery. The first article, "Family-Centered Service Delivery," reports on a study of 130 published sources in education, social work, nursing, psychology, occupational therapy, and related disciplines, which found that the key components of family-centered…

Black North America is ethnically and culturally diverse. It contains many groups who do not call themselves or have not always called themselves "Negro,""Black,""African-American," and so forth, such as Louisiana Creoles of color and many of the Indian tribes east of the Mississippi. There are also numerous North…

This paper describes activities and evaluation of the KinderApache Song and Dance Project, piloted in a kindergarten class in Cedar Creek (Arizona) on the White Mountain Apache Reservation. Introducing Native-language song and dance in kindergarten could help foster a sense of community and cultural pride and greater awareness of traditional…

Two rural Ojibwe mothers whose young children received early childhood at-risk services were interviewed about their life circumstances and experiences with service delivery. Major interview themes that emerged included positive experiences and successes with early childhood special education services, and rural and cultural obstacles to the…

This packet describes how a culture kit can be used to engage students in active learning. While using the kit and poster lessons, students will improve their skills of observation, valuing and analysis. Activities include: (1) a "What is it?" game of exploration of cultural items; (2) poster lessons depicting Indian food, gods and…

This packet contains teaching ideas for a unit on India. It is based on a series of interviews of people from India and directs students to develop a museum kit from the research. The packet begins with a unit on the United Nations and uses India as the model country for students to write their own projects. Questions for consideration are…

A Senate committee hearing received testimony about high dropout rates and other problems at seven off-reservation boarding schools operated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) or by tribal groups under BIA contract. The schools are Pierre Indian Learning Center (South Dakota), Sequoyah Indian High School (Oklahoma), Wahpeton Indian School…

This book covers U.S. history from the French and Indian War to the Constitutional Convention. The story of the United States is told in a form that is conversational and easily understandable to children. The book is divided into 41 brief chapters and an additional 5 features. A chronology of events, list of additional reading, picture credits,…

First Nations communities have particular needs to maintain cultural values as a central aspect of community. Elders, as the bearers of traditions and experience, are both the appropriate source and the appropriate vehicle for the maintenance and transmission of those values. On Vancouver Island, Malaspina University College delivers Child and…