NAYA Family Center Welcomes New Development Director Oscar Arana

PORTLAND, ORE.— The Native American Youth & Family Center welcomes Oscar Arana back to the organization as their new Director of Strategic Development & Communications.

Arana's career is combination of non-profit, government and journalistic experiences. He’s worked as a television news producer for an English and pioneering Spanish-language newscast in central Washington, a writer for Mexico City’s Associated Press bureau, NAYA Family Center’s youth development manager, and, most recently, as U.S. Senator Ron Wyden’s Multnomah County representative.

“My experience growing up in poverty resembles the experience of many of the NAYA youth and families,” says Arana. “I’m excited to be on the front lines of an organization whose purpose is to empower these families into self-sufficiency.”

Arana is a recent graduate of the University of Oregon’s Executive MBA program. He started volunteering for NAYA in 2001 as a chaperone for its youth dances and joined its staff in 2007. As a first-generation Mexican immigrant, Oscar is committed to the educational and economic success of NAYA youth and families. His personal interests include volunteering with community organizations such as JustPortland, the Oregon Latino Agenda for Action, and others, as well as recreational sports and reading.

NAYA Family Center’s mission is “to enhance the diverse strengths of our youth and families in partnership with

the community through cultural identity and education.” NAYA Family Center provides a vehicle for Native youth and their families to make healthy decisions and grow in positive ways. Through a holistic approach that focuses on the mental, spiritual, physical and emotional needs of our young people, NAYA Family Center programs seek to empower youth by helping them build personal qualities such as leadership and selfsufficiency skills.