Grantee Profile: Equity and Indigenous Youth Empowerment Project
A GLAM Girl and Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Partnership

To support the Equity and Indigenous Youth Empowerment Project, a partnership between GLAM (Global Local Athletic Movement) Girl and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe to build leadership among young people.

In 2024, GLAM Girl, committed to empowering girls through sports, and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe partnered to hold a weeklong camp for 32 girls, grades 4-8, from Mashpee, Bourne, Wareham, and Martha’s Vineyard.  Basketball was the hook.  Ryneldi Becenti, the first Native women to play in the WNBA, came from Arizona’s Navajo Nation to help lead the camp.  While coaching the girls’ shooting skills, she also taught life lessons about resilience and hope.  The girls also met two more inspirational role models: Olympic hopeful track+field star Janee’ Kassanavoid from Oklahoma’s Comanche Nation and Mashpee Wampanoag chef Sherry Pocknett, the first Indigenous woman to win the coveted culinary James Beard Award.  The camp also exposed the girls to important aspects of their heritage and culture. Every day began with a traditional talking circle, and a Wampanoag female leader shared a word from Wôpanâak language and explained its significance to the tribe.  The girls also took a field trip to Herring Day activities, where they learned about the role of the herring in Wampanoag life and participated in a poetry-writing session focused on their identity, interests, and aptitude.

In the final report of the project, Talia Landry, of the Mashpee Wampanoag Education Department, said, “As Wampanoag people, we’re matrilineal.  When our women are healthy, our entire nation is healthy.  To survive, we need these girls to grow up to be strong leaders, and that’s why it was important to plan GLAM Camp activities that helped connect them to their culture.”

The report also noted: “Of the 32 girls, more than half come from single-parent homes, two lost a parent to drug overdose, several have at least one parent in jail, and five are being raised by someone other than a biological parent.”  Having this experience in their formative years “helps strengthen their sense of identity, build confidence, and emphasize positive practices for physical, mental, and emotional well-being.”

Survey Summary
The partnership conducted the Youth and Program Strengths Survey (YAPS) and the Developmental Assets Profile (DAP), two tools developed by the Search Institute to evaluate youth development

• Program Quality: 92% of participants felt safe, supported, and engaged during camp activities. Many cited the presence of relatable mentors and role models as key to their positive experience.
• Cultural Connection: 89% of participants reported that the camp strengthened their connection to heritage and identity.
• Role Models and Inspiration: 94% of participants expressed that meeting successful role models who share their background helped them envision new possibilities for themselves.
• Anti-Substance Use Messaging: 100% of participants reported feeling that the programming encouraged them to stay away from harmful substances like drugs, alcohol, and nicotine, and to take an active role in being healthy.

Sustaining the Work

• Ongoing Mentorship. Wampanoag Youth leaders who helped run the camp (with other youth leaders from the GLAM organization) continue to mentor younger girls in the tribe.
• Building Connections. The Boys and Girls Club’s SMART Girls programming has a Native Adaption that was not being used by the Mashpee Club.  GLAM brought the Tribe and Club together to initiate this culturally relevant program.
• Increasing Access To Resources.  The experience also created the opportunity to share information and connect camper families to other Tribe resources.  In one case, a family received assistance through a food delivery program. 

https://www.glamgirl.life/

https://mashpeewampanoagtribe-nsn.gov/

“As Wampanoag people, we’re matrilineal.  When our women are healthy, our entire nation is healthy.  To survive, we need these girls to grow up to be strong leaders, and that’s why it was important to plan GLAM Camp activities that helped connect them to their culture.”
Talia Landry, Mashpee Wampanoag Education Department