Shovels and hard hats were on deck as ground was broken for a new cafeteria at Marysville Pilchuck High School (MPHS) on the afternoon of Friday, April 29.
“This is a proud day, a wonderful day, a day of new beginnings. It’s a day where we can celebrate starting anew,” announced Becky Berg, Marysville School District Superintendent. “This is a monumental day where we actually get to symbolically break ground. More importantly we get to come together as a community that’s been through something that not many communities understand and something that has made us stronger in the process. The young lives lost are not forgotten, ever, but the young lives currently attending the school will benefit from this wonderful structure. This is an amazing school district with a bright future ahead of us.”
It’s been 18 months since the MPHS shooting and the ripple effects of that fateful day are still being felt. However, the Marysville community continues to heal while visioning to the future. With the help of key state legislators and the backing by House Democrats, $5 million has been provided to build the new cafeteria. That will cover a very large portion of the estimated $8.2 million cost for the new building.
“Today we honor the wishes of our Marysville Pilchuck community and the needs of our Marysville Pilchuck students,” stated school board president Pete Lundberg. “We’re very thankful for the support of all those who let us know what they wished for us to do. I see this as a sign of the beginning of the future, positive steps in the Marysville School District that we can see going forward. As we keep our eye on the horizon, this new facility will be a wonderful accompaniment to not only the Marysville Pilchuck student and staff, but to our community as well.”
The old cafeteria, the scene of Jaylen Fryberg’s murder/suicide, has been closed since the shooting. School district leadership, along with community backing, has remained clearly in favor of not using that cafeteria ever again. The design for the new 16,000 square foot cafeteria, which is expected to open fall 2017, includes a kitchen, ASB office and community meeting space.
Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch, grandfather to shooting survivor Nate Hatch. Photo/Micheal Rios
“I want to thank each person who is here to witness the ground breaking of this structure,” said Tulalip tribal member Don ‘Penoke’ Hatch, grandfather to shooting survivor Nate Hatch. “I want to also thank my tribal members who are here because it’s not just the Marysville School District that’s struggling. It’s our parents in our Tulalip community as well. Hopefully, all of us can unite together to make this thing successful for everybody, for every one of the students in the school district.”
As the Marysville and Tulalip communities continue to heal, the ground breaking for an all new cafeteria was a step forward. The looks of anticipation and hopefulness that several students in attendance displayed are evidence of progress and recovery.
“When we look at the recovery process from an event like this there are several milestones along the way and I think this ground breaking represents yet another milestone in the recovery for the city as a whole, but most importantly for the kids and staff here at Marysville Pilchuck High School,” said Marysville Mayor John Nehring. “We are so grateful to all those who worked so hard to make the financing available for this project. I am so personally grateful for the strength of the leadership, staff, and kids here who continue to inspire us each and every day.”
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sided with Northwest tribes Monday in a decision to block the largest proposed bulk-shipping terminal in North America at Cherry Point.
Lummi hereditary chief Bill James, on the beach at Cherry Point, says saving it is to preserve “the tribe’s very way of life.” It’s the site of an ancient Lummi village. (Alan Berner/The Seattle Times)
The Lummi Nation has prevailed in its fight to block the largest coal port ever proposed in North America, at Cherry Point.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the agency reviewing permits for the deep water port project, agreed with the tribe Monday that it could not grant a permit for a project that would infringe on the Lummi Nation’s treaty-protected fishing rights.
The 34-page decision was celebrated by community groups and tribes all over the Northwest that opposed the coal port.
The developer, SSA Marine of Seattle, declared the decision “inconceivable” and political, rather than fact-based. Bob Watters, SSA senior vice president and director of business development, said the company was “considering all action alternatives.”
But legal experts said far from outlandish, the decisionfollowed federal obligation to protect tribal treaty rights and the habitat that makes those reserved rights meaningful.
“This is based on a long line of precedent,” said Robert Anderson, director of the Native American Law Center at the University of Washington School of Law. “You can’t have a right to fish without a decent environment.”
Lummi fishing rights and the associated habitat are property rights protected against interference by states, the federal government and private parties, Anderson noted.
Tim Ballew II, chairman of the Lummi Indian Business Council called the decision “a big win for Lummi and for treaty rights and for Indian Country.” The tribe argued the project was a killer for its crab fishery and would thwart rebuilding the herring run that was once the prize of Puget Sound.
The terminal would have brought some of the largest ships afloat into the usual and accustomed fishing waters of the Lummi up to 487 times a year to load and unload bulk commodities, principally coal, bound for Asian ports.
The project touched a nerve on both sides of the border among communities fighting coal and oil transport projects — none larger than the port proposed for Cherry Point, the last undeveloped bit of shore on a deep-water cove, between a smelter and two oil refineries.
The Lummi fought the project from the start. The tribe was opposed not only to increased vessel traffic and risk of pollution from the project, but any disturbance of the site of one of its oldest and largest villages and burial grounds, upland from the proposed shipping terminal.
Promises by the developer to minimize and scale back the landside footprint of the project did not interest the Lummi, who argued the project could not be mitigated.
While SSA voiced shock at the decision, some industry analysts said it merely put a project that was never going to be economically viable out of its misery.
“This is like cutting the head off a zombie; it stopped making economic sense years ago, and now it’s officially dead,” said Clark Williams-Derry, director of energy finance at the Sightline Institute in Seattle. With coal prices in a long slide and no recovery in sight, the project had no financial future, Williams-Derry said.
“They have no market for the coal,” agreed Tom Sanzillow, based in New York as the director of finance for the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, a nonprofit think tank. Coal-export projects are “wasting a lot of investor capital and people’s time,” he said.
The campaign against the project was hard-fought and its foes implacable. Brian Cladoosby, president of the National Congress of American Indians and chairman of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community in La Conner, called coal “black death,” and vowed tribes would fight the project to the end.
Cladoosby said Monday, “Today was a victory not only for tribes but for everyone in the Salish Sea. I hope we are reversing a 100-year trend of a pollution-based economy, one victory at a time.”
Tribal opposition to the project from around the region was good news for citizens from Seattle to Bellingham and beyond, noted Cesia Kearns, based in Portland as deputy regional director of the Beyond Coal campaign for the Sierra Club. “Protecting treaty rights also protects everyone who calls the Salish Sea home. I feel just an incredible amount of gratitude,” she said.
Mel Sheldon, chairman of the board of directors for the Tulalip Tribes, which also have treaty-reserved fishing rights at Cherry Point, said the port would have taken away a way of life not only for those who fish, but for tribal and nontribal residents who treasure the environment. “This is a journey we are all on.”
The decision was made by the Seattle District commander, Cmdr. Col. John Buck. If in the future the Lummi withdrew their opposition, SSA Marine can restart the permitting process, the corps noted.
But Ballew made it clear that is not on the table.
“We have always made our treaty rights and protection of the Ancient Ones our first priority,” Ballew said. “And we always will.”
Dr Stephanie Fryberg spoke about building on the strengths of Native students at her lecture held in Kane Hall, on the UW campus. Photo/Micheal Rios
Article/photo by Micheal Rios, Tulalip News
The way we learn is shaped by our culture. For indigenous children, there is often a mismatch between their culture and the classroom. This has been a long held belief in the Native community. For Tulalip tribal member and associate professor Stephanie Fryberg, Ph.D., she had the unique access to resources and methodology necessary to examine how indigenous children’s approach to learning and how the teaching model of their educators can coalesce to create a more supportive academic environment. Dr. Fryberg shared her findings during a lecture held at the University of Washington on Wednesday, April 20.
Dr. Fryberg’s lecture was part of the Connecting the Dots Between Research and Community series, where a UW Psychology professor partners with a visiting colleague to tell the story of how their research is addressing some of society’s biggest challenges. Presented by the UW Department of Psychology and the UWAA, this event was free and open to the public. In attendance to support their fellow Tulalip tribal member were Senator John McCoy, General Manager Misty Napeahi, and Board of Director Glen Gobin.
Dr. Fryberg’s lecture was titled Using Cultural Models to Build on the Strengths of Native Students. The description is as follows: Individuals are a product of the culture they inhabit, and also play an important role in creating and adapting to that culture. For many indigenous students, the culture of educational institutions in the U.S. reflects a set of ideas and practices about what it means to be a “good” student, the purpose of education and the nature of the relationship between teachers and students. This results in a cultural mismatch between indigenous students’ model of self and the model prevalent in mainstream educational contexts.
A central theme to the lecture was an examination of the “struggling Native student” narrative. We’ve all heard about this narrative and probably seen the statistics that are often used to defend it. Taking it up another notch, we’ve also heard that even when Native students do manage to graduate high school, they are not adequately prepared to achieve success in higher education. Dr. Fryberg attributes this narrative to being one of a cultural context and to alleviate the narrative we must reframe the idea altogether.
“We are going to reframe this idea of the struggling Native student by looking at it through a bigger picture, which we in my field refer to as the cultural cycle,” stated Dr. Fryberg. “The culture cycle reminds us that to truly alleviate the achievement gap we have to start by looking at every piece of the culture cycle. So when we think about a child in a classroom, it isn’t just about the child and the teacher, it’s about so much more. It’s about the ideas that stand behind why children go to school, it’s the ideas that lead to the development of the school, or that set the stage for what we see as the ‘good’ or ‘right’ way to be a student.
“Within that we setup institutions. We have schools and we have the media, but we also have classrooms and we have micro-cultures within classrooms, in which teachers play a role. So we get to this level of the interaction that’s between the student and the teacher, but sometimes what our field has shown is that interaction is not just between us in relationship, it’s between us and representational space. It is the idea the teacher has about me, as a student, that allows that space between us to shape the interaction and ultimately, for young children, to shape their development and the outcomes that we see.”
Within the cultural cycle it is critical to be aware of two distinct cultural models of self, the independent model and the interdependent model, that play major roles in how the shaping of interactions between student and teacher effect student development and achievement outcomes.
The independent model of self is based on an understanding of self as independent from others and the social context. “Good” actions promote separation from others and individual self-expression. The independent model of self is best seen in the U.S. mainstream, where context is driven by a set of cultural norms, values and beliefs that center the individual as independent and separate from others. It is a unique cultural model that most of the world does not engage in.
In many parts of the world that notion to separate yourself from others is not only unheard of, but would be seen as unhealthy. A much more common model is the interdependent model of self that is based on an understanding of self as interdependent with others and the social context. “Good” actions promote connection to others and attention to others’ preferences. Most people and cultures in the world, specifically outside of the U.S., engage in this more interdependent model. It’s important to recognize that Native culture is inherently within the interdependent model, but because we are within the U.S. our actions, values, and norms are constantly scrutinized by the mainstream independent model.
Now, you may be wondering how all these concepts and social psychology terms tie-in with Native students, their teachers and academic success. It does all come together.
By recognizing Native students’ engagement in the interdependent model of self, but that in large part their teachers and schools adhere to the independent model of self, we can then understand how the prevailing education system is not setup for Native student to succeed. However, there are courses of action to change this, which Dr. Fryberg and her team demonstrated at Quil Ceda Tulalip Elementary from 2011-2014.
Using the culture cycle to enhance academic performance by Native students alleviates the “struggling Native student” narrative by requiring culturally-grounded interventions that focus on all levels of the cultural cycle. This work is achieved by building schools that reflect and foster a diversity of viable ways of being; creating an immersion environment (e.g., morning welcome assembly, growth mindset, purposefully placing posters/images on walls); creating “matches” by helping Native students build identities that maximize potential while also providing them with a culturally-safe educational atmosphere; and by valuing old identities and scaffolding new identities.
In the study done at Quil Ceda Tulalip Elementary from 2011-2014 by Dr. Fryberg and her team, with the inclusion of the previously listed methods and intervention, the results were staggeringly in favor of increased Native student achievement. Kindergarten and 1st graders led the district in oral reading fluency; 95% of Kindergarten and 80% of 1st graders were proficient or above benchmark in reading. Using measures of academic progress in literacy and math for grades 3-5, 60% made more than one year’s growth and at least half of these students made 1.5 to 2 years growth. Best of all, the school met state annual measurable objectives in every category.
It’s important to note that having teachers who are aware of their own biases towards the independent model of self and willing to retrain and reframe their teaching methods to suit their Native students is central to overall success as well. It’s a cycle of understanding and legitimizing the learning and cultural model of Native children that leads to them making greater strides in academic development and achievement. When this occurs not only do the expected outcomes of the students and their teacher benefit greatly, but the entire community as well.
The world is beginning to see the physical effects of climate change in the shape of melting ice glaciers, rising sea levels, declines in animal species and changes in weather. Humans, while causing this change, can also be the cure. Through trimming our waste, recycling, and being more energy efficient, we can reduce our carbon footprint.
The folks at Puget Soundkeeper, an environmental group that works to protect and preserve the Puget Sound, teamed up with the Tulalip Tribes and Sno-King Marine Mammal Response, who promote respect of the marine environment, to host a community cleanup at Mission Beach in celebration of Earth Day.
The focus of the April 23 Mission Beach cleanup was to clear debris found along the shore and remove a noxious weed called Scotch broom.
“Each plant can dump thousands of seeds on the ground and they remain viable for 30 years or more. It grows fast and crowds out other native plants,” explained Julia Gold, Tulalip Tribes Natural Resources. “Over the last 3 years since the homes were removed from the beach, tidal action has formed a small dune on the upper beach and native willows, rushes and dune grasses are establishing themselves. But Scotch broom seeds are arriving quickly and have formed 10-foot high thickets in three short years. So for the Tulalip Natural Resources Department, removal of the Scotch broom is a high priority. The dune environment is a very important food source for young salmon coming from the Snohomish River. They look for cover in the nearby eelgrass beds and feed near the shore during high tide.”
Photo courtesy of Puget Soundkeepers
Puget Soundkeeper were looking for a beach clean project, and since the Tribe hosts one or more Earth Day events each year, they chose Mission Beach out of a dozen potential project sites.
Andy Gregory, Pollution Prevention Director for Puget Soundkeeper, explained the devastating affects marine debris has on the world’s oceans and how it impacts habitat and wildlife in critical and sensitive water bodies such as the Snohomish estuary adjacent to Mission Beach.
“Just below the low-tide line at the beach is critical Eel Grass habitat used by forage fish and juvenile salmon,” said Gregory. “Marine debris, and especially micro-plastics, can contaminate this habitat and enter the food chain where they become toxic to fish and the humans or marine mammals that consume them.”
Tulalip tribal members and community members, along with the two environmental groups, worked together to create change, to help the environment and protect its wildlife for us, for Mother Earth, and for our future generations.
“With the help of over 20 volunteers we removed 353 pounds of debris and a pile of Scotch broom that was bigger than my VW bus!” exclaimed Gregory.
“This work is both challenging and rewarding, while it can be frustrating to see trash carelessly left on the beach or shoreline, it is very satisfying to see such a group of enthusiastic volunteers happy to do their part to clean up. When we showed up in the morning, it was cold and stormy with a strong wind and intermittent rain. As we began to work, the clouds cleared and the sun came out. One of the girls from the tribe said, ‘The sun came out because our ancestors are happy with the good work we’re doing.’ I am humbled to be part of this important work.”
Please join Marysville School District staff, teachers, students, and families for a groundbreaking ceremony marking the beginning of a fresh start for our students and community.
M-PHS Commons Groundbreaking
Friday, April 29, 2016 at 1 p.m.
Marysville-Pilchuck High School
5611 108th St NE, Marysville, WA 98271
Event will be located between gym and stadium
*Parking is available in front of gym and pool
If you spend any time out in public, you are sure to encounter at least one small child having a huge melt down of emotion. Some parents feel confused by what is happening for their children in those moments. What is really going on?
Children experience the same emotions as adults do. Unfortunately, their brains do not yet have the capability to keep those emotions under control or “regulated”. Emotion regulation is a very complex function in the brain and requires being able to identify what we are feeling, what happened to make us feel that way, and what we can do to bring ourselves back to calm.
Out of all the important life skills parents teach their children, none may be more important than the skill of learning to manage emotions. This is a skill that supports “school readiness” beyond any skill in reading or writing. It is also a skill that research suggests can help reduce the onset of some mental health symptoms.
So you may be asking yourself, “How do adults teach this skill to a child?” Research has shown that when an upset child is in the presence of a calm adult who is trying to understand what the child is feeling, children will be able to use the adult’s sense of calm to help themselves get calm. Think back to a time when you were overwhelmed with a powerful emotion. If someone near you was meeting the same intensity of emotion as yourself, you may have found it difficult to get calm. Children have the same experience! Only when a child gets to a calm state can they take in information and “learn” from a situation.
In honor of the National Children’s Mental Health Awareness week find out more information on a variety of topics that support children’s mental health by attending the “Youth Mental Wellness Fair” happening on May 7th from 10-4 at Evergreen Middle School in Everett.
ChildStrive (formerly known as Little Red School House) has been partnering with Tulalip families for more than 30 years. For information about your child’s childhood development contact Courtney Miller at ChildStrive at (425) 353-5656 x7145 or Courtney.Miller@ChildStrive.org. More information about ChildStrive can be found on our website at www.ChildStrive.org
A rainy day back-up plan was in place, but unnecessary, as the rain stayed away and Tulalip was gifted a pleasant mid-60s, sunny spring day. The perfect Washington weather to bring the community out in droves to celebrate the Grand Opening of the Debra Barto Memorial Skate Spark and Alpheus “Gunny” Jones Sr. Ball Field on Friday, April 15.
Youth of all ages, adults, and elders took in the good weather, complimentary assortment of BBQ food, and a variety of entertainment now available with Tulalip’s very own skate park and ball field. Those who arrived early enough received a novelty t-shirt with a custom a graphic commemorating the day’s event. The graphic was created by Tulalip artist Ty Juvinel.
Tulalip Tribal Chairman Mel Sheldon shows off his moves. Photo/Mike Sarich
There was a DJ playing hit music, providing the necessary soundtrack for the outdoor festivities. Taking place in and around the skate park were skate board clinics, demonstrations by local professionals, and even a skate competition for 12 & Under, 13-17, and 18 & Up. Members of the Skate Like A Girl organization were on hand with the equipment necessary to teach those with no skate boarding experiences the basics.
Meanwhile on the ball field, the younger kids were playing kickball and t-ball, while the older kids were busy showcasing their athletic prowess in spirited games of flag football.
Bouncy houses, face painting, and henna booths were also available to add in more variety to the grand opening celebration.
Giving even more significance to the day was the fact it was also Debra Barto’s, the skate park’s namesake, birthday. Members of Debra’s immediate family were on hand wearing pink remembrance shirts in her honor.
Debra Barto family members. Back row: son Rayvin, daughter Clara, sister Sue, daughter Heather, mother Linda, sister Teddi, and nephews Vincent and Aaron. Front: grandsons Keaganand Cory, nephew Kasidi and niece Kamri. Photo/Micheal ríos
The Tulalip community looks forward to many more good days that see the skate park and ball field being utilized by people, from young kids to adults and elders, with sports, activities and entertainment for all.
Garden Gathering Saturday, April 23 in collaboration with Tulalip Tribes Natural Resources Department and the Snohomish County Conservation District. Events begins at 10am at the Karen I Fryberg Tulalip Health Clinic and includes a brief discussion on rain barrels and master gardeners will be on hand to answer questions about your own gardens. There will be a giving away of vegetable starts from the greenhouse.
MARYSVILLE, Wash. – Recognizing that early exposure to career options after high school is becoming increasingly important for student success, the Marysville School District, in partnership with the region’s leading educational institutions, civic organizations, and businesses, is hosting the fifth annual Opportunity EXPO on April 19.
The “My Future, My Choice” EXPO is a dynamic college and career-ready event for students across Snohomish County. The EXPO provides students with direct access to 2-year and 4-year colleges and universities, technical and trade schools, and military and civic organizations. Students also have the opportunity to meet and network with community leaders from business, government, and non-profit groups throughout Washington State.
This year’s sponsors include the Tulalip Tribes, Everett Community College, Washington State University North Puget Sound at Everett, Everett University Center, Junior Achievement of Washington, Marysville Tulalip Chamber of Commerce, and the Marysville Rotary and Rotary Education Foundation.
The Opportunity EXPO will be held at the Everett Community College (EvCC) campus and includes tours of EvCC’s new Advanced Manufacturing Training & Education Center (AMTEC), a visit to the home of EvCC’s Health Sciences programs, and campus-wide tours, giving student’s a greater understanding of the many opportunities available to them.
“We look forward to welcoming students from Marysville and Tulalip to Everett Community College,” said EvCC President David Beyer. “Today’s economy demands a highly educated workforce with a sophisticated and transferable set of skills. Together, with the Marysville School District, we are equipping students with the knowledge and tools they need to build successful futures.”
“We are committed to ensuring every student sees the many opportunities provided to them as they consider their path after high school, said Marysville Superintendent Dr. Becky Berg. “Students need to know success is ready and waiting for them to grasp. We are thankful to Everett Community College and our dedicated local community organizations for their ongoing work to show our students that anything is possible. As part of our Strategic Directions; the EXPO prepares graduates for economic and social realities by equipping them for future education, career, and citizenship in our globally-connected communities”.
All high school Juniors in Marysville and Tulalip will be bused to the EvCC campus on April 19 to attend one of two sessions. More than 100 colleges, career, technical and trade vendors, as well as business, community service and military representatives will be present. Schools and companies interested in participating or sponsoring the event should contact Jodi Runyon at 360-965-0001 or Jodi_Runyon@msd25.org.
