Workshop 1 | Applying the Whole-Family Approach: An Introduction to the Tribal Home Visiting Program (THV)

Amy Gourneau, Program Director, Turtle Mountain State/Tribal Home Visiting. Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa/Ojibwa — Ms. Gourneau was born and raised on the Turtle Mountain Reservation in Belcourt, North Dakota. After high school, she attended the University of Mary and received a Bachelor’s Degree. Amy has 3 children and 3 grandchildren with another bundle of joy on the way. She currently serves as the Program Director for the State and Tribal Home Visiting Programs at the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. Amy has served as the Director since 2016 and has more than 20 years serving families and children in the community.

Christi Hicks, Program Manager, Emergency Services, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma — Ms. Hicks has been with Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma for 7 years within the Emergency Services Department. Recently, she has taken on the role of Program Manager which allows her to be more involved with the CSBG program. Living in rural Oklahoma all of her life, she knows how important the CSBG program is to Choctaw Nation Tribal Members. Ms. Hicks is very happy to be able to learn from other Tribes as well as share her knowledge.

Brandi Smallwood, Program Director, Chahta Inchukka, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma — Ms. Smallwood is a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University Alumni and has devoted the last 16 years to serving Native American children and their families with the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. From 2005 through 2010, Ms. Smallwood served as a Home Visitor for CN Adolescent Family Life working with pregnant and parenting teen mothers and their children. After that, she began her position as Program Coordinator for Chahta Inchukka, Choctaw Nation’s Tribal Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visitation Grant and currently remains in position as Coordinator for the Choctaw Nation’s TMIECHV IEG1 – Chahta Inchukka.

Carrie Peake, Lead Project Officer Tribal Home Visiting, Administration for Children and Families (ACF) — Ms. Peake is a proud mom, coach, sister, and daughter. She’s thrilled to continue her passion for working with children and families through the Tribal Home Visiting (THV) Program. Carrie’s journey to home visiting started in her undergraduate studies at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia and then at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji. Her work in the Pacific on public health led her to be part of a community health nursing team, as a public health educator and home visitor in Western Samoa. This experience helped Carrie immensely when
she joined the THV team. Working in Indian Country is an honor and Carrie is so grateful to work in such a passionate and dedicated field with so many amazing Tribal programs.

Sophia Taula Lieras, Project Director, Programmatic Assistance for Tribal Home Visiting (PATH) — Ms. Taula Lieras serves as Project Director for the Programmatic Assistance for Tribal Home Visiting (PATH) team. PATH provides implementation and capacity-building technical assistance to Tribal Maternal Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) grantees across Indian Country. Prior to working at ZERO TO THREE, she spent over 18 years working in urban Indian organizations with children and families. Her work spans a variety of disciplines including home visiting, mental health, Tribal TANF, and education. She was also previously a consultant trainer for an evidence-based, culturally tailored home visiting model for tribal communities. Ms. Taula Lieras holds a Master’s degree in Social Work from Boston University and a B.A. in Psychology from Harvard University. She is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. She works from Roseville, CA where she lives with her husband and two daughters.