Partnership with Native Americans

“Process to review form 990: the organization works with an independent accounting firm to prepare the 990. Once prepared, the cfo and ceo review the form with the finance committee and then the board of directors.”

“Process to monitor compliance with conflict of interest policy: the board of directors, the ceo and all senior employees sign conflict of interest statements annually. Additionally, our employee reference guide has a section on our conflict of interest policy and new employees receive and sign an acknowledgment of the policy and completed questionnaire upon hire. Conflicts of interest, if any, are resolved as they arise. If any director discloses a conflict of interest, they are also asked to abstain from voting on matters related to the potential conflict.”

“Review of ceo or top management official compensation: the board of directors annually conducts a formal performance appraisal of the ceo, including the ceo's compensation. Every 2-3 years compensation data for ceo's of similarly sized non-profits is gathered and compared with the compensation provided to the organization's ceo. The final performance review is presented to the board and any compensation adjustments are documented in the minutes.”

“Review of other officers or key employees of the organization: an external consulting firm concluded a comprehensive compensation review in 2016 to include all other officers and employees' job functions and compensation, including comparisons to similar organizations in size and function. The compensation study was reviewed by the board and each employee received information about their role within the context of the study. The study is updated to add new positions or modify existing positions that have changed.”

“Availability of Documents: FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, 990'S, AND ANNUAL REPORTS ARE AVAILABLE ON PWNA'S WEBSITE. THE ORGANIZATION PRESENTLY DOES NOT PUBLISH ITS GOVERNING DOCUMENTS OR CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY, BUT WILL PROVIDE THEM UPON REQUEST.”

“DOING BUSINESS AS: AMERICAN INDIAN RELIEF COUNCIL (AIRC), COUNCIL OF INDIAN NATIONS (CIN), AMERICAN INDIAN EDUCATION FUND (AIEF), SOUTHWEST INDIAN RELIEF COUNCIL (SWIRC), SIOUX NATION RELIEF FUND (SNRF), NAVAJO RELIEF FUND (NRF), NATIVE AMERICAN AID (NAA), NATIONAL RELIEF CHARITIES (NRC), RESERVATION ANIMAL RESCUE (RAR), Northern Plains Reservation Aid (NPRA) & Southwest Reservation Aid (SWRA).”

“SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITIES: (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1)...HOLIDAY SUPPORT AND ANIMAL WELFARE. PWNA's Dual Role and Humanitarian Service Strategy: In 2015, our organization's name was changed to Partnership With Native Americans to better communicate our mission and connection to tribal communities. PWNA believes that Native American peoples have the power within themselves to build strong communities. The community members we work with know the challenges that exist and are finding solutions to them. We are a trusted partner and resource to lift their efforts - to champion hope and support for their success today and tomorrow. pwna takes a dual approach to serving Native Americans, responding to immediate needs in reservation communities by providing food, water, and other critical materials, and supporting community-based projects that sustainably address the core symptoms of poverty and contribute to self-sufficiency. Our organization approaches humanitarian service through an asset based community development (ABCD) framework which encompasses all strands of services in program logic model (material services, capacity building, community building and higher education). this ensures we build on assets present in the communities we serve and bring together individuals, programs, and outside resources to leverage the social capital of a much larger network mobilizing toward a common solution. Local participation and empowerment lie at the core of ABCD and lead toward sustainable community gains for the reservations, communities, programs and people PWNA serves. See www.nativepartnership.org to learn more.”

“HEALTH: (CONTINUED FROM PART III) SITUATION CONTINUED: These clinics are often long distances away only 500 clinics serve the 574 federally recognized tribes (less than 1 per reservation) and lack of transportation is an issue for many. Because this government-run health program is severely underfunded and understaffed for the population and need it was intended to address, I.H.S. focuses on healthcare crises rather than preventive care. PWNA thus supports reservation programs providing preventative care, home health visits and health education for long-term impact, helping them address diabetes at epidemic levels, obesity even for youth, tuberculosis seven times higher for Native Americans, more cancer-related disparities than any minority group in the U.S., higher infant mortality and lower life expectancy for some Native men (especially in the Northern Plains). A long history of oppression has contributed to the limited view of opportunities many Native Americans envision for themselves and their families. Supporting self-determination and reservation partners that require people to take part actively in community projects/services to receive materials and services from PWNA adds to individual and community well-being. PWNA RESPONSE: In 2019, PWNA supported healthy lifestyle programs and community activities for approximately 151,023 people. Among them, some 138,198 people participated in health events or other projects hosted by our reservation partners to increase community involvement in youth services, elderly service programs and wellness initiatives. New mothers participated in pre- and post-natal care, parenting and behavioral health programs, receiving baby baskets full of essential products. PWNA supported 397 reservation partners who conducted health screenings for diabetes, high blood pressure, tuberculosis and cancer; education classes on diabetes prevention, healthy nutrition and heart health; youth education such as suicide awareness and prevention; health appointments for immunizations, hospital post-release and medication monitoring; and home visits with those who are homebound or otherwise unable to access services. We also supported 173 partners who hosted community-wide wellness events and flu clinics, youth and cultural camps, language preservation and more. Additionally, with the support of Newmans Own Foundation, PWNA continued its critical Train-the-Trainer (T3) service, utilizing Native American chefs who emphasize preparing healthy meals with ancestral and locally available foods. We trained 72 additional professionals who prepare meals for tribal members on remote reservations. These T3 participants immediately demonstrated their newly acquired skills by preparing healthy public meals for approximately 415 people from 8 tribes, including Crow Creek, Cheyenne River, Northern Cheyenne, Pine Ridge, Hopi, Navajo, Southern Ute and Ute people who in turn have the potential to impact nutrition for six more people each (about 2,490). *DBA programs of PWNA for Health services: Southwest Reservation Aid (SWRA), Northern Plains Reservation Aid (NRPA), Southwest Indian Relief Council (SWIRC), Navajo Relief Fund (NRF), Sioux Nation Relief Fund (SNRF) and Native American Aid (NAA).”

“education services: (CONTINUED FROM PART III) situation continued: About 17% of Native American students start college, and only 13% of Native Americans hold a college degree. Contrary to public perception, college is not free for Native Americans, but Native students are often slow to ask for aid, believing college is not an option for them. Thus, non-native students are twice as likely to achieve an undergraduate degree. PWNA RESPONSE: By addressing both immediate and long-term educational needs, PWNA helps our partner schools and colleges motivate students and improve retention. In 2019, PWNA furnished school supplies for approximately 20,313 K-12 students at 68 schools, and essential supplies to support literacy for more than 8,700 children across 10 reservations, motivating reading and parent-child reading time and supporting reading comprehension. TOMS shoes/footware was distributed at Community Events serving More than 24,500 students. PWNA also supports Native American students pursuing a higher education, awarding scholarships to applicants who are most often in the middle range of the academic ranking and may not be considered by other providers despite their serious drive and proven ability to overcome obstacles. The academic-year completion rate for students who receive PWNA scholarships is 90-95%, considerably higher than the national average. PWNA credits this success to our individualized mentorship program and our unique selection process of identifying candidates with a likelihood of overcoming the first-year challenges that are unique to Native students. To increase funding for Native students, PWNA awarded nearly $120,000 in undergraduate and graduate scholarships in 2019 and awarded nearly $33,000 in grants to tribal colleges, universities, and other groups committed to Native education, impacting college access and retention for approximately 41 Native American scholars. With the support of Walmart Foundation, we awarded several laptops to first-year students. And with the support of the PepsiCo Foundation, PWNA completed the inaugural cohort of our Strong Native Women program. Through this all-women cohort based on our Four Directions Development Program (4D), we provided personal and professional development training to Native women who are emerging leaders and want to make greater contributions to their tribal communities. The cohort began in 2018 and completed in 2019, with graduates representing 7 tribes in Arizona and New Mexico. *DBA programs of PWNA for Education: American Indian Education Fund (AIEF)”

“emergency services: (CONTINUED FROM PART III) situation continued: PWNA is a reliable first responder quick to respond to tribes when disaster relief is needed. Some communities also experience acute or chronic contaminated-water emergencies. Additionally, 90,000 Native Americans are homeless and 40% of Native Americans live in sub-standard, overcrowded housing, with the typical wait time for tribal housing assistance at three years or more. PWNA RESPONSE: PWNA provided supplies to residential shelters for the aged, homeless, disabled and domestic abuse victims, assisting approximately 25,084 people in 2019. We supplied winter fuel for about 393 Elders of the Rosebud, Northern Cheyenne, Zuni and Navajo nations, as well as winter and summer emergency kits for about 2,182 Elders of the Cheyenne River, Gros Ventre and Assiniboine, Northern Cheyenne, Omaha, Rosebud, Standing Rock, Navajo and Quechan tribes, the Sisseton Wahpeton tribes on the Spirit Lake and Lake Traverse reservations, and the Hopi, Santa Clara, Kewa and Picuris pueblo peoples. These emergency kits equipped Native Elders with supplies such as blankets, batteries, candles, water, nonperishable food and other items helpful during winter storms, and water, sunscreen, bug spray, fire extinguishers and other items helpful during summer heat, storms and outages. PWNA rotates its seasonal readiness services to different communities in the Plains and Southwest to avoid creating dependency, but the level of need suggests increasing these services as funding permits. In 2019, two tribal communities - Oglala Sioux and White mountain Apache reached out to PWNA for disaster relief due to flooding and an extended power outage, respectively. We responded with more than 17,000 pounds of MREs, bottled water, hygiene kits, diapers, blankets and other critical supplies as appropriate to each incident, aiding approximately 225 tribal citizens impacted by the emergencies. Additionally, with support of Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies and a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the American Red Cross, PWNA expanded its capacity building to support tribal readiness to respond when disaster strikes. This included 20 emergency preparedness trainings, often including CPR and AED certification training, for about 336 participants across 8 communities of the Pine Ridge, Crow Creek, Cheyenne River and Lake Traverse reservations. We also completed 27 community engagement activities involving about 427 participants in 6 communities focused on tribal- and self-directed emergency preparedness. *DBA programs of PWNA for Emergency services: Southwest Reservation Aid (SWRA), Northern Plains Reservation Aid (NRPA), Southwest Indian Relief Council (SWIRC), Navajo Relief Fund (NRF), Sioux Nation Relief Fund (SNRF) and Native American Aid (NAA).”

“HOLIDAY: (includes $1,742,663 in material grants) PURPOSE OF THE PROGRAM: To help our reservation partners spread community cheer and involvement at times when families may be experiencing more disenfranchisement and seasonal stress. SITUATION: Native American Elders and children on the reservations we assist are certainly aware of holidays celebrated across the U.S., but frequently their families cannot afford holiday gifts or celebrations. Up to 43% of Native American children live in poverty and 61% live in low-income households, many of them raised by grandparents on severely limited, fixed incomes such as social security. Poverty rates in the hundreds of tribal communities served by PWNA range from 38% to 63%. PWNA RESPONSE: During the 2019 holidays, we helped 125 reservation partners address immediate needs by distributing stockings or holiday gift bags filled with practical items to about 20,503 delighted children and Elders. Our partners also used these and other events to promote skill building and volunteerism across 20 different reservations in the Northern Plains and 15 reservations in the Southwest. *DBA programs of PWNA for Holiday support: Southwest Reservation Aid (SWRA), Northern Plains Reservation Aid (NRPA), Southwest Indian Relief Council (SWIRC) and Sioux Nation Relief Fund (SNRF). FOOD & WATER: (includes $990,613 in material grants) PURPOSE OF THE PROGRAM: To ease food insecurity by supporting food sovereignty and local access to healthy foods among Native American Elders, children and families on the reservations we serve. SITUATION: Low food security insufficient food quality or variety for dietary health is a key issue on the impoverished reservations in our service area, fueling high rates of nutrition-related diseases such as diabetes and obesity when families must turn to less expensive but fatty and high-carbohydrate foods and plates often devoid of fresh vegetables. Food hardship - the inability to afford enough food for yourself and your family - is also on the rise, especially for homes with children, according to a 2018 study by the Food & Action Center. Nationwide, the food hardship rate is 16-19%, compared to 23% for Native American families. A growing number of food banks lack enough food to meet demand, and now, rather than an emergency solution, food aid has become a staple or long-term solution for more and more people who consistently need extra help to obtain enough healthy food with their severely limited financial resources. This is certainly the case for many families and food banks in the communities PWNA serves, along with another hardship - contaminated drinking water. PWNA RESPONSE: PWNA provided immediate relief by continuing our food deliveries in 2019, and our trucks and staff traveled approximately 168,500 miles to deliver these and other essential supplies. Our food boxes helped food pantries feed about 23,162 people. The staple foods we supplied for Elderly Nutrition Programs and soup kitchens helped provide approximately 11,698 Native American Elders hot meals 5 days a week. Our emergency and breakfast foods supported about 3,947 people, and our Thanksgiving and Christmas community meals helped feed about 11,545 people. Taking a long-term view of food sovereignty and capacity building, PWNA continued supporting the Native American Food Cohort sponsored by Newmans Own Foundation, working alongside other Native nonprofits to uncover possible enhancements of Native food systems. See also Health section on Schedule O for our train-the-trainer (T3) initiatives to support healthier nutrition. *DBA programs of PWNA for Food services: Southwest Reservation Aid (SWRA), Northern Plains Reservation Aid (NRPA), Southwest Indian Relief Council (SWIRC), Navajo Relief Fund (NRF), Sioux Nation Relief Fund (SNRF) and Native American Aid (NAA). ANIMAL WELFARE: (Grants of $122,709 including $82,709 materials, plus $40,000 in cash grants) PURPOSE OF THE PROGRAM: To support programs concerned”