Stories of strength & Resiliency Planning Guide by In Progress

Division of Compliance, Monitoring & Accountability

Substance Abuse Prevention Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide Office of Indian Education Albuquerque Service Center U.S. Department of the Interior

August

2010

!"#$%&'(&)'*+%*+,& INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................................4! PART 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE PROJECT ...............................................................................................6! Project Overview ...................................................................................................................... 7! Step 1: Schedule Dates.......................................................................................................................7! Step 2: Identify a School Coordinator .............................................................................................7! Step 3: Initial Planning Meeting.......................................................................................................7! Step 4: Identify Participating Students ...........................................................................................7! Step 5: Meet With Students ..............................................................................................................7! Step 6: Complete Topic Brainstorming...........................................................................................8! Step 7: Project Team Meeting ...........................................................................................................8! Step 8: Coordinate and Schedule.....................................................................................................8! Step 9: Scriptwriting & Technical Preparation ..............................................................................8! Step 10: Field Production ..................................................................................................................8! Step 11: Review and Critique ...........................................................................................................9! Step 12: Edited Drafts ........................................................................................................................9! Step 13: Online Publishing and DVDs ...........................................................................................9! Partners..................................................................................................................................... 9! In Progress ...........................................................................................................................................9! Project Staff ........................................................................................................................................10! Participating Schools ........................................................................................................................12!

PART 2: TOPIC BRAINSTORMING ............................................................................................................13! Key Information ..................................................................................................................... 14! Primary Contact Information..........................................................................................................14! Participating Student Information .................................................................................................15! Topic Brainstorming .............................................................................................................. 17! Challenges..........................................................................................................................................17! Strength and Positivity.....................................................................................................................18! Role Models .......................................................................................................................................19! Landscapes, Creatures, Sites and Symbols ...................................................................................20! Musicians, Actors and Artists .........................................................................................................21! Protocols.............................................................................................................................................22! Additional comments.......................................................................................................................23! Releases .................................................................................................................................. 24!

Introduction The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) is committed to ensuring that its students have safe and secure learning environments that provide them with the knowledge and skills to become leaders in our community. Substance abuse is one of the biggest threats to school campus safety and security. Abuse of alcohol and drugs directly affects studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; academic performance and social development. Students who use drugs and alcohol are more likely to be absent or tardy, and to drop out of school. Illicit substances on a school campus bring with them the potential for violence and crime. Statistics from the 2008 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) and the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) show that, compared to other demographic groups, Indian youth are more likely to: !

Have abused drugs and/or alcohol within the last year

Have engaged in risky behaviors, such as driving while drinking or selling drugs

Carry a handgun, bring a gun to school, get into a serious fight at school, be involved in gang-on-gang fights, or attack someone with intent to harm

Have known risk factors such as unstable home situations or easy access to drugs

Have less exposure to protective factors such as hearing prevention messages at school, participating in a program to deal with drug or alcohol use, or talk to their parents about the dangers of drug or alcohol use.

To address this issue, the BIE has launched a substance abuse prevention initiative as part of a larger program to improve school safety and security. For one component of this initiative, two nationally recognized videographers will be visiting twenty schools and will work with 200 students present a series of videos for the public. These videos once completed will serve to strengthen the publicâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s understanding of how American Indian youth find strength and resiliency within their schools and local communities. The purpose of this guide is to provide selected BIE schools with an overview of video planning and production, and begin a planning process that will help determine the content to be contributed by each participating school. Once videos are completed, they will be made available on the web site of the Bureau of Indian Education. The address is: www.bie.edu. Participating schools will receive digital copies of the completed works and links to other online venues will be made available to all who participate. In this guide, you will find a description of the video storytelling experience that will take place at your school, important contact information and a blue print for planning with students. It is our hope that every school can find herein what it needs to prepare students for this exciting and unique opportunity.

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Part 1: Introduction to the project Stories of Strength & Resiliency is a video project designed to provide a collective, public voice for American Indian students about topics related to substance abuse and its prevention. The project will engage approximately 200 American Indian students attending BIE schools and dormitories in telling their own stories. The twenty schools and dormitories participating in this project are the schools that provided information on school safety and security last spring to interviewers who came to the schools. At the time of those school visits, the interviewers told school administrators that, for their participation in the data collection effort, their schools would be provided with video cameras. The project described herein is the next step in that process. Students at these schools, with the help of professional videographers, will create a documentary series that will ultimately raise awareness about how youth experience substance abuse from their own point of view. The cameras used will become the schoolsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; property in the hopes that students will continue to tell their stories of how they meet lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s challenges. The footage collected from each partner school will be used in the production of three to five longer videos that examine recurring topics and concerns shared amongst communities. The completed videos are ultimately intended to demonstrate the inherent resiliency of the students who attend tribal schools and dormitories, and the resources they draw on to strengthen it. Project activities will begin in late September 2010 and will run through May 2011. Expected completion date for online publishing of the video series is August 2011 on the BIE website.

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Project Overview In order to ensure a successful experience for the students and a quality video, it will be important to follow the steps listed below:

Step 1: Schedule Dates A representative of the BIE will be contacting you shortly to set up the dates for your storytelling experience. You will be expected to reserve three to four days for participation. The activity is designed for six to 10 students.

Step 2: Identify a School Coordinator A staff person should be identified who can actively participate in planning and facilitating the video storytelling experience. The coordinator should be familiar with the students, understand the local community and be available during the creation of the videos to support students and the visiting videographer. The selected coordinator will receive an honorarium of $250 for his or her participation, to cover time spent outside of the school day in coordinating and supervising the activity.

Step 3: Initial Planning Meeting Approximately four weeks prior to the scheduled storytelling activity, a videographer will set up a conference call that will require participation from a lead school administrator and the designated site coordinator. During this time, you will be able to ask questions, set up broad themes for the video and discuss logistics and scheduling of activities.

Step 4: Identify Participating Students Work with the identified coordinator to select six to ten students to participate in this activity. The students may represent any grade level 5th grade and up. It will be important that participants have a history of good attendance and are willing to be in front of a camera.

Step 5: Meet With Students Once students have been identified, bring them together to meet and discuss their perspectives on how substance abuse affects their lives. It will be important that they reach consensus on broad topics, and visiting with one another will be key to building trust within the group. A sample DVD has been provided that demonstrates the power of youth voice that may be helpful when introducing the project to students. 7

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Step 6: Complete Topic Brainstorming Within this guide is a section entitled â&#x20AC;&#x153;Topic Brainstorming.â&#x20AC;? This section contains a series of questions related to the topic of substance abuse and how students cope with it at home and school. Some information may be completed by the designated school coordinator. However a second meeting with students may be required to complete the workbook.

Step 7: Project Team Meeting Approximately two weeks prior to the storytelling activity, a teleconference will be set up between students, the school coordinator and the designated videographer. This session will provide an opportunity for students and coordinator to ask questions, share ideas and provide insight into the subject matter that will be covered. At this time a tentative schedule of activities will be finalized that complements the brainstorming process.

Step 8: Coordinate and Schedule Once all members of the project team are in agreement, it will be important to schedule interviews with selected community and school representatives, coordinate any field excursions into the local community and obtain signed release forms from all students who will participate in the project.

Step 9: Scriptwriting & Technical Preparation Day One of production will focus on finalizing the planning process, writing narration for the subsequent video and introducing basic video production concepts that will be used when in field production (i.e. camera use, production language, and techniques for getting a good interview). The time will be spent at the school in a classroom reserved for this activity.

Step 10: Field Production Each subsequent day of the storytelling activity will be spent collecting interviews, capturing the imagery of the local community and school, and shaping the overall content that will be contributed from your school. Based on previous planning, transportation may be required for staff and students during this period.

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Step 11: Review and Critique Following field production, the project team will have the opportunity to review footage and provide feedback regarding what should and should not be included in the submitted video. As a gesture of appreciation for participation the designated videographer will leave each school a video camera for use in gathering future stories of importance to the school, its students, and the local community.

Step 12: Edited Drafts Most videos require extensive editing, which will typically be completed 6-8 weeks following production. While this work will take place in the videographers’ studios, the videographer will post stages of the draft online for the project team to provide feedback, to ensure student participation in the shaping of the final product.

Step 13: Online Publishing and DVDs Upon completion of all final videos pieces, your school will receive a set of DVD masters of the edited works, including the videos produced with other participating schools. Links will also be provided to national websites where your work can be shared with the general public.

Partners The Bureau of Indian Education in partnership with the Vander Weele Group has identified the following partners in implementing Stories of Strength & Resiliency.

In Progress IN Progress is a small non-profit arts organization dedicated to “paving the way” for new voices in the field of digital media. IN Progress artists have been working with Indigenous communities for

more than twenty-five years to support youth in telling the stories of their own communities. Their goal is to assist artists from a very early age to develop content, purpose and passion for their own stories and to share them with others. IN Progress has worked with the following Indian schools:

! Anishinabe Academy, Minneapolis - Minnesota ! Bug O Nay Ge Shig School, Leech Lake Nation – Minnesota ! Four Directions Charter School, Minneapolis – Minnesota ! Nett Lake School, Bois Forte Nation – Minnesota ! Red Lake High School, Red Lake Nation – Minnesota ! The Red School House, Saint Paul – Minnesota

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

IN Progress also has a strong history of working directly with community groups and

organizations through its programs. Some of the partners include: ! S Lake Community Center, Leech Lake Nation – Minnesota ! Leech Lake Tribal College, Leech Lake Nation – Minnesota ! Kego Lake Community Center, Leech Lake Nation – Minnesota ! Tuscarora Community Group, Maxton, North Carolina Video and photographic works created by the youth involved with IN Progress have traveled internationally to film festivals, museum exhibits and more. Project Staff Kristine Sorensen, Videographer & Production Coordinator Kristine Sorensen is the founder and executive director of IN Progress. She has twenty-five years experience working with American Indian communities and their youth and is an accomplished video instructor. She founded IN Progress with several young artists and has dedicated her life’s work to building avenues for youth to speak through digital media channels. Mike Hazard, Videographer Mike Hazard, a.k.a. Media Mike, is artist-in-residence at The Center for International Education and IN Progress. He teaches people of all ages how to make lively videos and he makes video portraits of lively people. His remarkable series of videos includes Jim Northrup, Robert Bly, Thomas McGrath, Frederick Manfred, Tiger Jack Rosenbloom and Jerry Rudquist. He is working on a video portrait of George Stoney, a 94-year-old filmmaker widely regarded as the leading documentary maker in the field. Mike has worked with the Circle of Nations School in Wahpeton, North Dakota for ten years and has extensive experience teaching youth in the Midwest. Editing Staff IN Progress has a strong roster of newly developing digital producers and editors that will also be

working to support the stories of the youth involved with Stories of Strength & Resiliency. All have experience working with American Indian youth and bring their own Indigenous perspective to collaborating on this project. Working on this project will be: Tiana LaPointe, Lakota, Rosebud Nation - Saint Paul Minnesota Tiana LaPointe has been making videos about sacred sites since the age of 14. She now works as a documentary video instructor for IN Progress and provides professional services in multimedia production. She has screened her work nationally and traveled as a video mentor to Ireland. David Sam, Anishinaabe, Bois Fort Nation – Minneapolis Minnesota David Sam is a video producer and developing media instructor for IN Progress. He has been producing videos since the age of 13 when he was a student at the Circle of Nations School in Wahpeton, ND. He has since presented his videos at the Smithsonian’s Native 10

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

American Film & Video Festival, Seattle International Film & Video festival, ImagineNATIVE Film Festival and several more. He also recently completed a seven-day training with FOX News in Los Angeles. Sai Thao, Hmong â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Saint Paul Minnesota Sai Thao founded IN Progress with Kristine Sorensen in 1999. She began as a youth filmmaker, who at the age of 18 received her first grant to record the traditions of her family members living in Laos. She currently manages a digital arts program for In Progress at the Four Directions Charter School and is working to complete a feature length documentary about the ties between the Hmong in Laos and those that migrated to the United States. Kao Choua Vue, Hmong â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Saint Paul Minnesota Kao Choua Vue has been making videos since the age of 12. She has four years teaching experience in Hmong, Latino and American Indian communities. She is currently working to complete her college degree in Urban Studies, and is currently producing a featurelength documentary about the oral traditions of the Hmong living in Laos.

IN Progress is located at: 262 4th Street East, Studio 301

To contact Media Mike www.thecie.org

www.in-progress.org

mediamic@thecie.org

inprogress301@gmail.com

651.227.2240 work

612.805.0514

651.470.8364 cell

Please ask for Executive Director, Kristine Sorensen for further information.

To contact the IN Progress editing staff tianalapointe@yahoo.com

To view youth-created videos visit the IN Progress YouTube site at http://www.youtube.com/inprogress301

davidsam91@gmail.com saithao@aol.com vue.green@gmail.com

To view IN Progress publications of photographic works and curriculum publications visit their online storefront at http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=954562

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Participating Schools Twenty schools and dormitories that have already participated in an evaluation process related to this project have been selected for participation. They are listed below: Aztec Dormitory (Aztec, NM) Blackfeet Dormitory (Browning, MT) Bug-O-Ne-Gay-Shig (Bena,MN) Chemawa (Salem, OR) Cherokee Schools (Cherokee, NC) Cibecue (Cibecue, AZ) Circle of Life (White Earth, MN) Circle of Nations (Wahpeton, ND) Flandreau (Flandreau, SD) John F. Kennedy Day School (White River, AZ) Little Wound (Kyle, SD) Many Farms (Many Farms, AZ) Nah Ah Sing (Onamia, MN) Pine Ridge (Pine Ridge, SD) Richfield Dormitory (Richfield, UT) Riverside Indian School (Anadarko, OK) Rocky Ridge (Kykotsmovi, AZ) Sherman Indian School (Riverside, CA) Standing Rock Community Schools (Standing Rock, ND) Wingate High School (Ft. Wingate, NM)

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Part 2: Topic Brainstorming Typically when In Progress works in partnership with a school or community, there is extensive time spent â&#x20AC;&#x153;visiting.â&#x20AC;? Visiting allows for trust to be built, information to be exchanged, and consensus to be developed amongst all partners. Due to time constraints, most of this visiting process will have to take place via teleconference and on the first day of the videographerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s visit. In order to make the most of our time together, we ask that the school coordinator, in partnership with participating students, complete the following set of questions prior to the second teleconference with the visiting videographer. During this teleconference (approximately one hour in length), project team members can use the questions as the basis for planning the video you will work together to create. Once the videographer arrives, he or she will collect the completed planning guide and signed release forms. They will use the written notes as a guide in the editing process. Your help in completing these questions is an essential part of the planning process and should not be overlooked. Questions regarding how to complete the guide should be directed to: Kristine Sorensen Email: inprogress301@gmail.com Telephone: 612.805.0514

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Key Information Knowing the names and key contacts that are connected to both your school and this project will be of benefit to all those working on the project. Please take the time to complete the following:

Primary Contact Information School Information Name of School: ___________________________________________________________________ Address: _____________________________________________________________________ City/Zip: _____________________________________________________________________ Telephone: _____________________________________________________________________ Fax: __________________________________________________________________________ Website: ______________________________________________________________________ Primary School Contact (Principal, Superintendent, Director, etc.) Name: _________________________________________________________________________ Title: _________________________________________________________________________ Telephone: _____________________________________________________________________ Email: _________________________________________________________________ ____________

School Coordinator for Video Project Name: ________________________________________________________________________ Role in School or Community: ____________________________________________________ Telephone: ____________________________________________________________________ Email: ________________________________________________________________________

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Participating Student Information Please list the names of the 6-10 students that you expect will participate in this project. 1.

Student: _______________________________________________________________________ Age:___________________________________________________________________________ Grade Level: ___________________________________________________________________ Tribal Affiliation: ________________________________________________________________

Student: ________________________________________________________________________ Age:___________________________________________________________________________ Grade Level: ___________________________________________________________________ Tribal Affiliation: ________________________________________________________________

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

10.

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Topic Brainstorming The next series of questions are designed to engage the project team in thinking about how substance abuse affects youth, their school, their families and the communities they live in. Please involve participating students in this process and encourage them to continue thinking and writing about these topics after the form is completed.

Challenges Place a number (1 being the most influential to 10 being the least influential) to indicate of how you as a group see these challenges as major influences in your lives at school, at home and in your local community: bullying gangs peer pressure substance abuse violence family issues stress truancy depression/mental illness other (please specify):

Please use the space below to add additional comments or cite specific examples:

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Strength and Positivity Place a number (1 being the most influential to 10 being the least influential) to indicate how you as a group witness strength within individuals, activities at school, family, and more:

traditions school activities family ceremonies self friends goals elders school staff other (please specify):

Please use the space below to add additional comments or cite specific examples:

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Role Models Who are the people at your school, in your home and in your community that you feel live a healthy and fulfilling life? Please name 3 to 5 people that you know that you consider to be a strong role model: First Name: What makes this person a strong role model in your eyes?

First Name: What makes this person a strong role model in your eyes?

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Landscapes, Creatures, Sites and Symbols What is special about the school, land and community you live in? Please list all those special places like classrooms, signs, lakes, horizons, trees, plants, deserts, historically important places and symbols (eagle feather, medicine wheel). These are the images that define the community you live in, that show it as unique from other places in the world. Please list everything you can think of:

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Musicians, Actors and Artists Who are the artists at your school, at home, or in your community that might be willing to contribute their music, artwork, acting talent, or crafts to the creations of your video? These can be people who sew regalia, bead, paint, play traditional or contemporary instruments. Please list 3-5 talented people that you would like to include: 1.

Name: Adult or Youth? Talent: Contact Information:

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Protocols What should our videographers know before meeting with you? What school and community protocols should absolutely be forefront in the project teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s planning? How can they best show the cultural respect you and your community deserve and expect? Please feel free to speak freely about any concerns, or safeguards that must be considered by professionals and list below:

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Additional comments Please use the space below to add any additional questions or comments:

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Releases It is anticipated that the students who work on the video will appear in it. It may also be the case that students who are not actively participating may appear in the background in some scenes that are filmed at the school or in the community. Any student appearing in the film must sign a release form. Below are two sample forms that can be used for this purpose. If you have any questions about who should sign a release and why, please contact either of the following: Kristine Sorensen Email: inprogress301@gmail.com Telephone: 612.805.0514

Vicky Stein, Project Manager for the Vander Weele Group Email: Vicky@vanderweelegroup.com Telephone: 773.929.3030

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Division of Compliance, Monitoring & Accountability

Substance Abuse Prevention Stories of Strength & Resiliency

RELEASE OF LIABILITY I (student) or I (parent or legal guardian for), , hereby acknowledge that receiving filmmaking instruction presents the risk of injury. Providing only that the Bureau of Indian Education shall use reasonable care in selecting instructors for such activities, I hereby assume such risk of injury, for myself, my heir and personal representatives, so I hereby release the Bureau of Indian Education and partners, employees and agents, officers, directors, trustees, volunteers, and its filmmaking instructors, and all other students involved in the activities from any liability for any injury that I or my child may suffer in connection with participation in such activities. I further acknowledge that my or my childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s participation in these activities is permitted only upon my execution of this instrument and that my or his or her participation is purely voluntary. Student signature

Date

Parent or Guardian signature

Date

Printed Name

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Division of Compliance, Monitoring & Accountability

Substance Abuse Prevention Stories of Strength & Resiliency

Photography, Videotaping, and Presentation Consent and Release I (student) or I (parent or legal guardian for) hereby acknowledge that Bureau of Indian Education will occasionally photograph or videotape classes for educational funding and publicity purposes only, and I give consent for the use of any photographs or videotapes of me or the above-mentioned child for such purposes. I also understand that Bureau of Indian Education may show videos or films produced by the above-mentioned child in public and/or to private individuals at future dates. By signing this form, I acknowledge that the Bureau of Indian Education has the right to make such uses of the videos or films without further permission from or compensation due to any of the participants. I agree that I will not authorize or support any claims of any time, either on my own behalf or on behalf of my child, in connection with the duplication, distribution, publication, broadcasting, or performance of any videos I or my child produced or in which I or my child appears. Student Signature

Date

Parent or Guardian Signature

Date

Printed Name

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

Sample DVD Included in this packet is a DVD that provides 4 samples of youth produced videos. Each video demonstrates a unique approach to how American Indian youth are identifying their own understanding of strength and resiliency. The pieces on this sample DVD are described below. The ages listed, represent the age of the artist(s) upon the year of release.

Nature’s Child by Brooklyn Isham - age 11 Nett Lake School - Nett Lake Village, Bois Forte Nation © 2010 Nature’s Child is a video poem that expresses a young girl’s love and respect for both the natural world that surrounds her and her Anishinaabe heritage.

Life In The Seventh Prophecy by Shyra Antone, Nadine Beaulieu, James Cloud III, Melissa Johnson, Anthony Morrison Randi Roy, Chris Spears, & Floris Strong – ages 16 & 17 Red Lake High School – Red Lake, Red Lake Nation © 2009 Life In The Seventh Prophecy pays tribute to the teaching of the seven fires as seen by those living in the seventh generation.

This Is Me by David Sam - age 17 Four Directions Charter School - Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bois Forte Nation © 2008 This is Me a personal documentary about a young man’s struggle to turn the negative experiences of school bullying into positive action.

Life On The Reservation by Danielle White, Joe Joe White, Rodger Johnson, Regina Walker, Rodney Johnson Jr., Jessica White, Anthony Hare, Keith Carmona, William Robinson Stately – ages 7 – 19 Kego Lake Community Center – Kego Lake Village, Leech Lake Nation © 2006 Life On The Reservation is a documentary short about what life is like for young people living in the rural village of Kego Lake on the Leech Lake Reservation. The video was produced as a response to a negative news article that spoke about the “lost” youth of Leech Lake Reservation.

Stories of Strength & Resiliency Video Production Planning Guide

This planning guide was produced by the Vander Weele GroupLLC under the auspices of the Division of Performance & Accountability of the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Education. This guide was produced under Contract No. CMK0E060001.

The following VWG staff members are responsible for the content: Dr. Victoria Stein, Senior Managing Associate Kristine Sorensen, Subject Matter Expert Mike Hazard, Subject Matter Expert Heather Hawthorne, Special Assistant to the President