Culturally-Sensitive Help for Native Families

 

The Family Spirit Program is a culturally tailored home-visiting intervention delivered by Native American paraprofessionals as a core strategy to support young Native parents from pregnancy to 3 years postpartum. Parents gain knowledge and skills to achieve optimum development for their preschool age children across the domains of physical, cognitive, social-emotional, language learning, and self-help. The Family Spirit Program consists of 63 lessons to be taught from pregnancy up to the child’s 3rd birthday. This in-home parent training and support program has been designed, implemented, and rigorously evaluated by the Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health in partnership with the Navajo, White Mountain Apache, and San Carlos Apache Tribes since 1995.

The Family Spirit Program offers parenting help to Native parents and families. If you are pregnant or a parent to a child under 3 years of age and interested in developing parenting skills, then this program is ideal for you. You will help your child develop emotional resilience and physical well-being. Parents will also learn how to build a strong, healthy family that is connected to your Native heritage.

Benefits of the Family Spirit Program:

  • Increase parenting knowledge and skills;
  • Address maternal psychosocial risks that could interfere with positive child-rearing (drug and alcohol use; depression; low education and employment; domestic violence problems);
  • Promote optimal physical, cognitive, social/emotional development for children from 0 to 3;
  • Prepare children for early school success;
  • Ensure children get recommended well-child visits and health care;
  • Link families to community services to address specific needs; and
  • Promote parents’ and children’s life skills and behavioral outcomes across the lifespan.

Eligibility Requirements for the Family Spirit Program:

The Family Spirit Program Curriculum is designed to serve mothers prenatally through to a child’s 3rd birthday. Programs that are working with participants in this age range are eligible to be trained on Family Spirit.  Each program will have unique eligibility requirements for implementing the program.

How To Sign Up

  1. Select your county below to find the Family Spirit representative in your area.
  2. Email or call the representative and let him or her know you're interested. He or she will help you determine if you're eligible and give you more information about registering.

Select Your County

Apache County

Apache County Health Dept

Kimberly Penrod

75 W Cleveland St #2A
St. Johns, AZ 85936

Phone: 928-337-7932

Website

Gila County

San Carlos Apache Tribe

Melinda Goode

PO Box 0
San Carlos, AZ 85550

Phone: 928-475-1576

Cochise County

Cochise Health and Social Services

LaRae Swartz

4115 E Foothills Dr.
Sierra Vista, AZ 85635

Phone: 520-803-3923

Graham County

San Carlos Apache Tribe

Melinda Goode

PO Box 0
San Carlos, AZ 85550

Phone: 928-475-1576

Coconino County

Coconino Co. Health Department

Charmayne Lane

467 Vista Ave
Page, AZ 86040

Phone: 928-679-7295

Website

Coconino Co. Health Department

Charmayne Lane

2625 N King St.
Flagstaff, AZ 86004

Phone: 928-679-7295

Website

Maricopa County

Native American Community Health

Orenda Hill

777 W Southern Ave. Bldg C
Mesa, AZ 85210

Phone: 602-279-5262 x 3319