Three years ago, the Behavioral Health Aide (BHA) Advisory Workgroup was created through the advocacy of Tribal leaders in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. This workgroup was vital to the creation of the BHA Education Program that could be implemented for the first time in the Northwest. This task would be guided by the successful work of the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC), who were the first to lead the way in the Community Health Aide Program (CHAP). As members of the BHA Advisory Workgroup collaborated with ANTHC and gained the knowledge in how their system was built, clear understandings were made that this could be a reality for Northwest Tribes.

BHAs have a wide variety of skills, knowledge, and talents. They are advocates, natural healers, counselors, empaths, and natural helpers who are responsive to the need for mental/behavioral health services in their Tribal communities. They are individuals whom are committed to providing individual and community support to address the challenges that Native peoples face in regards to substance misuse, mental health struggles and other health disparities.

The BHA Advisory Workgroup, facilitated by the Tribal Community Health Provider Project (TCHPP) was the meeting place for program inspiration, development, collaboration, and consultation. In 2020, Heritage University (HU) and Northwest Indian College (NWIC) became partners that would become the academic institutions to create educational pathways for future BHA students. As this partnership and engagement grew, much of the curriculum building, gap analysis of BHA matriculation, and the continuation of relationship-building occurred and knowledge of the BHA program began to grow across the Northwest.

In 2021, came the large task of program implementation and student recruitment. Now that the BHA Advisory Workgroup, TCHPP BHA team members, and institutions had a clear idea of the pathways they could create, it was time to start going through the curriculum and building programs that were culturally-specific. At the forefront of the NW BHA Education Program was the need for holistic, trauma-informed, and Tribal based knowledge that Native students could immerse themselves in. The schools began collaborating with local Tribes, Tribal elders, and Indigenous scholars that would review and build the courses for the program.

As the academic institutions built their curriculum and program packages to be approved, the TCHPP team began recruiting a pool of candidates from Oregon, Washington, and Idaho Tribes that would participate in the NW BHA Education Program cohort. TCHPP met with Tribal Delegates, Tribal Health Directors, Clinical Supervisors, and Behavioral Health Managers to help them understand the BHA role and the value they would bring to their tribal organizations. We are pleased to announce that the BHA Education Programs are matriculated and students began the program in January 2022. Northwest Indian College is offering an Associate’s degree in Chemical Dependency with a total of 10 students and Heritage University is offering a BHA Certificate with 9 students! These 19 students are the first to embark on this journey in the NW and their passion and commitment will forge pathways that build healthy and strong Tribal communities for future generations.