Western WA Native American Education Consortium

EVERY NATIVE STUDENT SUCCESSFUL

Founded in 1974, the Western WA Native American Education Consortium/WWNAEC is made up of a group of public school educators in Western Washington who work with Native American students. Each of our individual programs are funded through the federal Office of Indian Education Title VI program.

WWNAEC meets every other month during the school year at various sites within our region and we hold a two-day conference in late February.

Who We Are

Spring 2026 WWNAEC Merit Award Application

Merit Awards are offered to Native American High School Seniors each Spring to students planning to attend an accredited two- or four-year College, Tribal College, or University, including Career Technical Institutes. WWNAEC is an organization dedicated to furthering the educational goals of Native Youth in Western Washington; therefore, recipients must be tribally affiliated or direct descendants. A minimum 2.00 GPA is required, and the student must be in a school where a Native Education Counselor is a member of WWNAEC. WWNAEC offers several awards at $575.00--575 being the number of Federally Recognized Tribes. The number of awards is contingent on last year’s fundraising efforts.

If you have any questions, please email Rachael Barger at rbarger@bethelsd.org. 

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO COMPLETE AND SUBMIT THIS APPLICATION

Provide contact and parent/guardian information, tribal affiliation, the name of the Title VI or Native Education coordinator for your school, any honors or awards, and any extra-curricular, volunteer, or community participation.  

Please have the following documents ready to upload to this application:

  1. An official high school transcript (a photo or PDF is acceptable)

  2. TWO letters of recommendation from teachers, community leaders, or others who know you personally, but are not related to you, and can confirm your abilities and leadership qualities. (PDF, Word Doc, Google Doc, etc.)

  3. A copy of the acceptance letter to the college, university, or institute you will attend, a copy of the completed application, or other proof of application. (photo, email, PDF, etc.)

APPLY NOW

What is Native Education and Why Does It Matter?

In the first installment of our new video series, we asked educators and parents in our community what Native Education means to them.