001[music] For Spokane Public Schools, success is [music] making sure that everyone has a voice and everyone has a chance to reach their full potential. We have almost 30,000 [music] students. So, we're a larger school district. A big part of what we do annually is to review [music] key performance indicators to see where the opportunity gaps are, to see where our students need more supports. When we looked back in 2020 [music] and saw some of the opportunity gaps within our native [music] student population, we had to have tough conversations that there needed to be some changes in policy and processes. Spokane [music] school district has about 1,900 students and families that have identified as [music] Native American. Success first starts by listening to all of our stakeholders and [music] really elevating voices of under underrepresented individuals.
002I'm really proud of the work that we've done [music] through native education. We have taken steps to provide staffing, to work on [music] culturally competent curriculum, and to also elevate native students in their leadership roles, [music] and to create community connections to make sure that they feel seen and valued within our [music] community. Last week, I actually had a chance to go to a native student excellence [music] ceremony at one of our local middle schools, and it was so incredible to see our native work in action, [music] seeing families, their students being celebrated in their regalia. It was a really incredible site to see. It was a joyful experience that I think really shows what it looks like when [music] you invest in native education. When we talk about native leadership [music] in our Spokane
003public schools, it often starts in the families and then it starts in the different programs that our partners [music] have. They help cultivate native leaders and that's something that we try to pick up and carry [music] forward in our native programming here. Our graduation rates for native [music] students have gone from 78% to 89%. Our [music] native students also have increased in their rate of extracurricular and [music] group involvement. They've made a dramatic jump and so we're really proud of that cuz again that shows [music] connection to their school community and that's part of our strategic plan. It's [music] really an honor to receive this award. Um Spokane Public Schools is a wonderful district [music] and we work really hard every day to make sure uh every child feels like they belong and so that
004they can um maximize their potential. So, it's really an honor to receive this award. As a native woman, [music] as a native elected official, uh this work is very personal to me and [music] to see it recognized I think is uh just really [music] important because it amplifies and it shows that there are other school districts that this [music] can be done. And when you do it in a way that is honoring and respectful [music] and partnership with all the different partners that we have that really great things can happen.