Books for Diné Bikéyah: 10k in Ten Days

Update as of 11/17/22: Several donors received an email about funds not being received by us and to choose another charity. We don't know why this is happening and have recieved the funds from the PayPal Giving Fund and have spent the majority of the funds on books by Daniel Vandever, Navajo author of Herizon. Please see below for reciepts. Thank you.

PayPal Giving Fund Check (minus GoFundMe Fees):

Supporting our communities with children's books. In 2018, less than 1% of published children's books featured Indigenous characters. This means that Indigenous children have little access to characters who look like them, to books in their language, and to authors with their cultural background. So, we send books by Indigenous authors to our youth. And we need your help.

 

Help us raise $10,000 dollars to send children's books by Diné authors to Diné youth in Shiprock, NM! Books like Horizon and The Navajo Year Walk Through Many Seasons will be a huge support to young Navajo children during these tough times by bringing light to their traditional stories of resilience and language revitalization resources. The STEAM Connection will be contributing $2k, help us make up the difference! 

 

Quick Facts:

-100% Indigenous-led. Run by Dr. Joshuaa Allison-Burbank, a Speech-Language Pathologist from the Navajo Nation who hand-picks the books for his community.

-100% of the books we purchase are by Indigenous authors.

-In 2020, we raised $40,000 for books to go into community COVID kits.

-Over 2,000 books have been donated so far.

 

Learn more about the fundraiser and books here .

 

Who is leading the project?

 

Dr. Joshuaa Allison-Burbank (@ndnslp)

Dr. Joshuaa Allison-Burbank (Diné / Acoma Pueblo) is a father of two from Tohatchi, NM on the Navajo Nation. He is a Speech-Language Pathologist and Developmental Scientist at Johns Hopkins University. He is the founder of Little Moccasins Education Services and is a leading mentor of The STEAM Connection where he is helping develop SkoBots, language learning robots for Indigenous youths. His work focuses on culturally responsive teaching practices, parent coaching, and kindergarten readiness. Dr. Allison-Burbank recently co-authored a chapter called American Indian Fathers and their Sacred Children in the recently published book titled ‘Handbook of Fathers and Child Development’ and also contributed to "Our Smallest Warriors, Our Strongest Medicine: Overcoming COVID-19".

 

Danielle Boyer (The STEAM Connection Representative)

Danielle Boyer is a young Indigenous (Ojibwe - Sault Ste Marie Tribe) robotics inventor, author, activist, and advocate for youth who has been teaching kids since she was ten years old. Danielle creates equitable and innovative learning solutions for minority youths with robots that she designs, manufacturers, and gives away for free. In 2019, she created The STEAM Connection, a minority and youth-led charity that has reached hundreds of thousands of children worldwide with technical education. She has been named one of PEOPLE Magazine's Girls Changing the World, a L'oreal Paris Woman of Worth, a MIT Solve Indigenous Communities Fellow, and a Verizon Forward for Good Winner for her invention of biodegradable robotics components. She is currently developing a wearable language learning robot for Indigenous youths named SkoBots and resides in Metro Detroit, MI.

 

 

This project is hosted by The STEAM Connection, a tax-exempt 501(c)3 charity. The STEAM Connection is a youth and minority led charity that creates and distributes diverse, accessible, and affordable Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) educational materials and resources for children. Your donations are tax-deductible.