MISSION – Our mission is to preserve and enhance our children’s cultural knowledge and traditional skills while providing them the experiences and tools they will need to navigate the modern world.
VISION – A future in which all of our children take strength and direction from their past as a path to fulfill their dreams and prosper in the present.
Goals
- Promote academic success
- Guide to discover individual passions
- Provide world-expanding experiences
- Motivate parents to help build their child’s pathway to the stars
- Meet mental and behavioral health needs
Nooksack Youth Enrichment Program
The Tribe’s Youth Department serves youth who are Nooksack, or in the household care of a Nooksack Tribal member, and age 5 through 12. Any student must be registered with our Youth Department in order to participate in our Summer Program or After School Program. You can download and complete the Youth Program Application and return it to our Timber Ridge facility, at 5604 Mission Road, to our Tribe’s Administration Building, 5061 Deming Road.
In order to maintain a safe environment for the Summer Youth Program, a Youth Program Parent Handbook is now available for review and the Education Department is requiring parents to sign an acknowledgment form that they read, understand, and agree to the policies in the handbook before their child can start the program on July 6. Send completed forms to Ravenia at rdwilliams@nooksack-nsn.gov.
A copy of the Parent Handbook can be printed or emailed to parents upon request.
YEAR-ROUND PROGRAMS AVAILABLE
The Youth Department offers an After School Program, a Summer Program, and regular field trips along with various services in support of our youth. Through the After School Program, students participate in homework completion; helpful Behavioral Health group sessions; fitness and recreation and more!
We also take students on field trips when one or both of our local school districts has no school. Through the field trips, we visit Whatcom County establishments for education, recreation and fun, including trips to Bellingham’s Sportsplex and the Trampoline Zone.
The Summer Program is packed with great events that none of our students will want to miss, including funded trips to places like Wild Waves, the Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle Aquarium and the Birch Bay Waterslides.
For more information, contact the Youth Department at (360) 966-9696.
To file a complaint or notify the Department of a concern with the Youth Program, submit a Complaint/Concern Form.
Youth Department Staff
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Dean Ollinger
Youth Program Operations Manager
Phone: (360) 966-9696 x4107
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Victoria Williams
Youth Department Receptionist
Phone: (360) 966-9696 x4101
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Avtondil Kekutia
Transportation Coordinator