About CNAFF

Who we are

CNAFF is the Center for Native American Financial Freedom. Our mission is simple: building financial skills so Native youth can keep their money, grow it, and stay free.

Who we serve

Our lessons are made for any youth who are high school age and older. Each one is ready to go, so any youth leader can pick it up and teach it with confidence.

What we do

CNAFF creates classroom-ready lesson packages. Each one includes a lesson plan, a student handout, and a slide deck that all share the same facts, and some lessons add extras like topic cards or practice scenario cards. Our lessons are grouped into four pillars: Learn the skills, Build security, Own your freedom, and Know our roots.

We build our lessons from official sources like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), StudentAid.gov, and tribal publications. Our lessons are for education. They are not personal financial, legal, or tax advice.

Why we started

Many Native youth receive real financial resources from their tribes, including per capita payments, trust funds, and scholarships. But few schools teach young people how to manage that money, save it, or grow it.

Without that knowledge, a head start can disappear before it has a chance to change a life. That isn't a failure of our youth. It's a gap in what they've been taught.

CNAFF was created to close that gap. Our lessons are grounded in Native culture and community values, and they give young people the tools to turn today's resources into lasting financial freedom.

Jewels Sublette, Founder

As a tribal member of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, Jewels, like many tribal members, received educational and financial support from her tribe. What she wasn't given was anyone to teach her how to manage or save that money properly, and like many others, she spent it before she knew how to make it last.

That changed in college. Jewels earned her bachelor's degree in business with a focus in marketing, graduating magna cum laude. Along the way, she realized that much of what she was learning about personal finance should have been taught in high school. With those tools earlier, she could have set herself up for a stronger financial future with fewer bumps along the way.

Today, Jewels works with youth in her community who are, or will be, in similar situations. She founded CNAFF for that exact reason. Our youth deserve more than a head start. They deserve the knowledge to make it last.