Trauma-informed professional development & training – Grant Program

Trauma-informed professional development & training – Grant Program is sponsored by Better Way Foundation. Supports trauma-informed professional development and training.

Programs – Better Way Foundation Better Way Foundation’s partners are finding a better way to build a future where child well-being contributes to strong families and communities. As a non-Indigenous foundation, we strive to be a good ally to our partners. Every day, we are learning—listening, unlearning, and deepening our understanding of Indigenous values and ways—to transform our work.

We are on a learning journey, one that we unfold by putting in time and effort ourselves; we then complement what we uncover with the knowledge and wisdom of our Indigenous partners. We are grateful for their support of our growth. Throughout U.S. history, Indigenous peoples have persevered through systemic oppression, racism, and economic injustice.

What’s more, Native Americans in Philanthropy reports that Native communities continue to be the most under-invested in the United States, receiving less than half a percent of all private philanthropic funding. Better Way Foundation is honored to partner with Native American leaders and communities to fulfill their vision for high-quality, community-driven, culturally rooted early childhood learning and development.

The strength and creativity of the solutions our partners share inspire us and we prioritize allocating resources across Indian Country to support their efforts to restore languages and cultures and help children and families thrive.

As a foundation committed to advancing Indigenous ECD, we’re excited to share our latest progress: Our Work in Indian Country (Video) We continue to be inspired by our partners’ dedication to systemic and holistic approaches that support the well-being of all children. Indigenous Early Childhood Development In 2025, we reached a milestone of investing $10 million into Indigenous early childhood development.

In assessing how to explore IECD, we started by learning from Indigenous communities and following their lead. This includes partnering with Echo Hawk Consulting in the development of a landscape analysis and listening to current and prospective partners.

Investment Priorities Include IECD leadership and staff development Supporting transitions from pre-K to Kindergarten Truth & Healing work to mitigate intergenerational trauma Development of IECD programs and curriculum integrating Native languages & cultures Grant-making Strategies Include ● Multi-year grants throughout long-term partnerships ● Systems approaches to bring diverse stakeholder together ● Networks & collaborations ● Piloting new projects and programs C̣aƞṡayapi Waḳaƞyeża Owayawa Oṭi (via Lower Sioux Indian Community) Comanche Language & Culture Preservation Committee Indigenous Montessori Institute (via KCLC) Little Earth Residents Association Montessori American Indian Childcare Center NACA-Inspired Schools Network Oceti Sakowin Community Academy Oglala Lakota College Lakota Head Start & Early Head Start Pueblo of Isleta Head Start & Child Care Tohono O’odham Community College Weetumuw Katnuhtôhtâeekamuq (via Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe) Keres Children’s Learning Center Pueblo of Jemez Walatowa Head Start Language Immersion Program American Indian Catholic Schools Network We support the American Indian Catholic Schools Network and its member schools as they collectively advance three pillars: Marketing and advancement We also provide member schools with direct grants, supporting projects aligned with network priorities, such as Native language instruction and educator development.

De La Salle Blackfeet School San Carlos Apache Catholic Community St. Anthony’s Indian School St. Augustine Indian Mission School St.

Joseph Mission School St. Mary’s Mission School St. Michael Indian School Intergenerational trauma and the boarding school era significantly impact the work of our IECD partners to build better futures for Native children, families, and communities.

We approach Truth & Healing at the intersection of our broad partnerships and our Catholic roots. We are compelled by our mission, vision, and values and guided by our Native community partners to think about the ways we can support Truth & Healing in a humble, authentic way. We began this work in 2018 with a convening of a Truth, Healing & Reconciliation Task Force that included partners to explore both the landscape and opportunities.

We are currently building out our commitments to support Truth & Healing. Healthy Children, Healthy Nations The initiative’s launch followed the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis establishing the Center for Indian Country Development in 2015, it identified ECD in Indian Country as one of its focus areas. ( Link).

In partnership with Echo Hawk Consulting, the center, and the Shakopee Mdewankanton Sioux, we aligned on three objectives: (1) Gain a better understanding of the IECD landscape in Minnesota and the 11 Native Nations in it; (2) Spotlight the excellent work of IECD providers; and (3) Engage funders in learning and reflection to drive more philanthropic dollars toward IECD.

The initiative produced an extensive report and partners hosted a conference to plan actions stemming from it. Shakopee Mdewankanton Sioux and Better Way then seeded a new Healthy Children, Healthy Nations Fund to bring new resources to IECD. Casey Family Programs contributed additional funding.

The fund awarded $200,000-plus in 2019 and has helped raise the profile of IECD and engage other funders in it. Crystal Echo Hawk Landscape & Opportunities Report (2016) In 2016, Echo Hawk Consulting completed research on the landscape of ECD service provision in Native communities and analyzed opportunities, challenges, and potential entry points for our support and engagement.

Recommendations include supporting Native-led and -serving organizations to: Facilitate collaboration, networks, and partnerships Teacher recruitment and retention Native language and culture Planning and capacity building The report also calls for using grant strategies, such as core support grants, systems approaches, geographically focused work, and multi-year grants.

Discover more in the full report Indigenous evaluation was an important part of the recommendations from the 2016 Echo Hawk Indigenous ECD Landscape Report. In 2018, we began learning about Indigenous evaluation with expert Dr. Teresa Peterson (Upper Sioux Community) and consulting with Dr. Shelly Valdez and Jill Stein to help IECD partners build out evaluation strategies.

Learnings and Indigenous evaluation principals informed our current Evaluation Framework. Learn about the evaluation University-Community Partnerships This initiative, inherited during the merger from the original Better Way Foundation, provided seed funding for innovative ideas that faculty at Catholic Universities put forward to support ECD research and education: Catholic University of America, St.

Catherine University, Boston College, University of Dayton and University of Great Falls. TAKE A LOOK AT THE REPORT In 2007, we explored programs for vulnerable children in East Africa, and made early grants in eastern Tanzania. After deepening relationships and integrating early lessons, we focused investments on direct ECD delivery organizations and national advocacy for ECD.

In addition to supporting increased access to ECD, we connected our partners with Results for Development to build their capacity to monitor, evaluate, and strengthen programs. After nearly 15 years of partnership, we have achieved many of the goals of this initiative, and in 2022 our board voted to begin responsible exit.

Mama’s Hope Organization for Legal Assistance Tanzania Home Economics Association As our Tanzania initiative winds down (through 2025), we are committed to a responsible exit to ensure the stability of our partner organizations and the long-term sustainability of ECD in Tanzania. Learn more about our partnership framework and lifecycle. Current Grant Opportunities 60 South 6th Street, Suite 2950 info@betterwayfoundation.

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