The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition
Our Mission: To lead in the pursuit of understanding and addressing the ongoing trauma created by the U.S. Indian Boarding School policy.
How We Started
The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS) was incorporated as a 501(c)3 nonprofit in June 2012 under the laws of the Navajo Nation.
We were formed after a national symposium in 2011. Leaders from the U.S. and Canada came together to discuss the Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the need for such a process in the U.S.
NABS was created to develop and implement a national strategy that increases public awareness and cultivates healing for the profound trauma experienced by individuals, families, communities, American Indian and Alaska Native Nations resulting from the U.S. adoption and implementation of the Boarding School Policy of 1869.
NABS was fiscally sponsored by the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) until it became financially independent in 2015.
Board of Directors
Sandy White Hawk
President
Sicangu Lakota
James LaBelle Sr.
1st Vice President
Inupiaq
Ruth Anna Buffalo
2nd Vice President
Mandan Hidatsa Arikara Nation
Maka Black Elk
Secretary
Oglala Lakota Nation
Joannie Suina Romero
Treasurer
Pueblo of Cochiti
Rochelle Ettawageshik
Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
Juana Majel-Dixon, Ph.D.
Pauma-Yuima Band of Luiseño Indians
Travis Miller
Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans
Michael Yellow Bird
Mandan Hidatsa Arikara Nation
Staff
Samuel B. Torres, Ed.D.
Deputy Chief Executive Officer
Mexica/Nahua
Stephen Curley, MALIS
Director of Digital Archives
Diné/Navajo Nation
Theresa Sheldon
Director of Policy and Advocacy
Tulalip Tribes
Kenrick Escalanti
Creative Director
Fort Yuma Quechan Indian Tribe
Deidre Whiteman
Director of Research and Education
Meskwaki/Dakota/
Ojibwe/Hidatsa
Jennifer Blevins, Ph.D.
Director of Operations
Iko'tsimiskimaki "Ekoo" Beck
Community Engagement Coordinator
Blackfeet/Red River Métis
Lacey Kinnart
Program and Operations Coordinator
Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Ojibwe
Previous Board Members
We are grateful to our previous Board Members for their service and commitment to Boarding School Healing. Thank you!
Sarah Eagle Heart, Oglala Lakota
Marlene Helgemo, Ho-Chunk Nation (2014-2020)
Vance Blackfox, Cherokee Nation (2017-2019)
Henry Cagey, Lummi Nation (2017-2019)
Jacob Davis, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa (2016-2018)
Jerilyn DeCoteau, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa (2014-2018)
Denise Lajimodiere, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa (2012-2018)
Patricia Whitefoot, Yakama Nation (2014-2017)
Chase Iron Eyes, Standing Rock (2015-2017)
Andrea Carmen, Yaqui Nation (2014-2016)
Elicia Goodsoldier, Dine/Spirit Lake Dakota (2015-2016)
Edna Brillion, Haida/Cree
Rosemary Gibbons, Mimbres Apache/ Chicana
Don Coyhis, Mohican
Coalition
The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition is a membership organization comprised of over 100 Native and Non-Native members and organizations committed to boarding school healing.
All Members of the Board of Directors are Regular Members of the Coalition. Learn how to become a Coalition Member.