CONNECTIONS IN INDIGENOUS RESEARCH, CULTURAL LEADERSHIP AND EQUITY
(CIRCLE) COLLAB
Ha’a,
I am Kait Hirchak, a descendant of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe/White, mixed European ancestry (Italian, Spanish, Swedish, and Slovenia, to name a few). I spent my childhood summers on my family ranch on the beautiful Wind River Indian Reservation before moving there full-time when I was 15. I attended the Wind River Tribal College and worked on the reservation for 4 years prior to pursuing my graduate training. My Mom and extended family continue to reside on the reservation in Fort Washakie.
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I am proud and honored to be able to carry forward the dreams of my ancestors. The work we do through the CIRCLE Collab in partnership with PRISM and other collaborators is for our remarkable Indigenous ancestors, families, and future generations.
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Whoweehoo!
CIRCLE STUDENTS COLLABORATORS
PRISM -CIRCLE COLLAB FELLOWS
CIRCLE COLLAB HIGHLIGHTS
Jalene Herron, Kait Hirchak, & Alex Hernandez-Vallant at the 2023 Collaborative Perspectives in Addiction in beautiful Abq. Kait presented as part of a clinical roundtable, "Reinforcement and Life-enhancing Treatments for Addiction: Applications Across Diverse Settings and Populations."
Here’s Kait Hirchak and Sara Parent together once more with Drs. Sara Becker and Bryan Garner (not pictured but somewhere around there) presenting as part of the symposium, “This Addiction Treatment Works. Why is it so Underutilized?” at the 15th Annual D&I Conference in Washington, DC.
Meena Richardson with her Best Graduate Student poster award for “The Cultural Adaptation of Western Frameworks: A Scoping Review of Dissemination and Implementation Science to Strengthen Substance Use Treatment for Indigenous Communities” at the 2022 Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS).
Congrats again, Meena!
Kelsey Bajet, Kait Hirchak and Meena Richardson (in collaboration with the Urban Indian Health Institute), presenting “Factors for Prescription Opioid Use and Geographic Distribution of Opioid Overdose Fatalities among American Indian and Alaska Native and Non-Hispanic White Adults” at the 2022 annual Society for Prevention Research conference!
Kelsey Bajet at the 2022 Society for Prevention Research presenting one of her many posters, “Age and Geographic Distribution of Opioid Overdose Fatalities among American Indian and Alaska Native and Non-Hispanic White Adults.” Great work, Kelsey!
GET INVOLVED
KAIT HIRCHAK IS CURRENTLY ACCEPTING STUDENTS FOR THE 2022-2023 SCHOOL YEAR THROUGH THE PREVENTION SCIENCE PHD PROGRAM. FIND OUT MORE HERE.
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The CIRCLE Collab also has many opportunities for students and community members interested in our research and supporting Indigenous health and well-being.