UW Medicine Pathology Native American Education Program

The UW Medicine Pathology Native American Education Program is generously funded by Nelson Fausto, Professor and Chair of UW Medicine Pathology, and his wife, Dr. Ann De Lancey. As part of the program UW Medicine Pathology has hosted groups of Native American students from the WWAMI region, including students from White Swan Middle School on the Yakama Reservation (pictured bottom), the Chief Leschi Tribal School in Puyallup (pictured top), University of Montana Upward Bound Program, and the Yakama Nation.

The primary goal and objective of the UW Medicine Pathology Native American Education Program is to expose Native American middle school students located on tribal reservations in the Pacific Northwest to educational and career opportunities in health sciences. We intend to do this by partnering with educators on tribal reservations – through the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute's extensive contacts – and hosting up to 15 middle school students on campus for a series of educational and interactive tours and activities with UW Medicine affiliates and select Seattle organizations devoted to increasing health and/or science education opportunities for underrepresented youth. Special attention and sensitivity to the cultural dynamic between modern medicine and science and Native American healing practices. Staff members from the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute will work closely with UW Medicine Pathology to ensure that Native American culture is embraced, celebrated and incorporated into the program’s educational outreach activities.

The program also seeks to proactively address many of the socio-economic and healthcare related issues that may adversely impact Native American youth from pursuing education and career opportunities in health sciences or any other field. This is especially important given skyrocketing rates of obesity and diabetes in the Native American community. We humbly propose to address this situation one student at a time by establishing meaningful mentorship relationships, providing access to positive Native American role models, and tracking their academic progress throughout their middle school, high school education, and hopefully, advanced training.

The following UW Medicine Pathology and Indigenous Wellness Research Institute members will provide leadership and mentorship support:

Polly Olsen (Yakama), Community Relations & Development Director, IWRI

Rose James (Lummi), Pathology Post-Doctoral Fellow

Leslie Caromile (Eastern Cherokee), Pathology Graduate Student

Jessica Sutterlict (Yakama), University of Washington

Program advisor Jessica Sutterlict (pictured left) with Program Coordinator Polly Olsen

Chief Leschi Visit

Students from the Chief Leschi School in Puyallup will visit the University of Washington on Friday, April 11th. Chief Leschi is a tribal school operated by the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, serving the educational needs of area Native American families. The visit was scheduled to coincide with several Native American events at UW, including the First Nations' Pow Wow at the Bank of America Arena and NACOE's annual Faculty Development Seminar. These events will give the students an opportunity to observe and participate in Native American cultural activities on campus, expose them to UW Native American faculty, trainees and staff, and help demystify career and educational opportunities available at the University of Washington.

In addition to the events listed above, the schedule will also include the following activities and mentoring opportunities:

Burke Museum meet and greet with tour of the People of the Plateau exhibit
Gross Room and/or Autopsy Tour
Cytogenetics Tour
Research Lab Tour
ISIS Tour (to be confirmed)
NACOE dinner and networking at Talaris Conference Center
First Nations' Pow Wow at Bank of America Arena

2009 Program Highlights

Ten high school students for the Yakama Reservation visited UW on Wednesday, May 27th as part of the department's Native American Education Outreach Program. The program, designed to expose Native American students to education and career-related opportunities in health sciences, is generously supported by Drs. Nelson Fausto and Ann De Lancey. This was the fourth group of students to participate in the underrepresented minority outreach program. In addition to touring the campus and observing several pathology labs, the students also attened the 2009 Student BioExpo at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue. Over 350 students presented projects at the Expo this year. Next year these students will present their own original science projects at the 2010 BioExpo. Pictured above is Dr. Jean Campbell and one of the Yakama Nation students. Click here to view more pictures of the visit.

Program Contacts

Please contact the UW Medicine Pathology Native American Education Outreach Program Coordinators if you have any questions:

**Native American Education Outreach Program Coordinators**
Steve Berard	Polly Olsen
Communications Manager	Director, Community Relations & Development
UW Medicine Pathology	Indigenous Wellness Research Institute
P: 206.685.0564	P: 206.616.8731
Email: sberard@u.washington.edu	Email: polly@u.washington.edu