Success Stories

Lisa and Buffalo Youth Nation Project have been absolutely irreplaceable when it comes to setting up and sustaining foundational systems for student success. Often in schools we tend to hear that we need to “focus on what we can control” as a response when a student faces non-academic challenges such as food insecurity, traumatic stress, housing transitions, and other social and economic stressors. In some places this ends the conversation and is accepted as a reason/excuse for a lack of student and community thriving. Since our partnership with BYNP, I have gone from hearing this frustrating statement multiple times per week to zero. With their crucial, timely, effective support we have been able to develop systematic responses to some of our families’ biggest obstacles. Our food program has served hundreds of children, adults, and elders in the community as well as providing necessities such as laundry soap, toothbrushes, bathing essentials, and more. Families are grateful for the support and as a direct result we are seeing gains in attendance, academics, behavior, and student self esteem. Their flexible, responsive support model is a breath of fresh air compared to the usual red tape encountered in government programs which can leave students waiting months or forever for the support they should be eligible for. We are sincerely grateful to have been blessed with this partnership and I’m 100% certain we will see clear positive effects from Lisa’s hard work in the Wind River Reservation community for generations to come.

Author 

Cheryl Coleman