Decolonization requires examining and challenging the colonialist practices that have influenced our society and still persist today. Indigenous centered practices recognize the importance of creating approaches based on the beliefs, histories and practices of Native American and Indigenous (NAI) peoples when working with NAI communities.

Drs. Carol Robinson-Zanartu and Katy Leigh-Osroosh co-direct the SHPA project, an interdisciplinary training program which prepares school counselors and psychologists to work with NAI youth with high mental health needs. Shpa is a Kumeyaay word for eagle in one of the dialects, and represents the centering of the Kumeyaay community in this work. SDSU scholars, educators and community leaders are creating Kumeyaay centered resilience groups.

This project will help us understand how Indigenous centered practices contribute to the development of protective factors in NAI youth experiencing colonialist education systems.

The U.S. Department of Education supports this work (H325K190006).

https://education.sdsu.edu/shpa