The American Indian Graduate Magazine Spring 2016

The Inside this Issue:

American Indian

GRADUATE Spring 2016

• President’s Message • A Message from the Director

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An easy way for federal employees to donate — 11514 American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC)

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The American Indian Graduate is now available online at aigcs.org

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• And more…

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• National Science Foundation

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• A Doctoral Experience

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• Alumna Update

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• The Cobell Scholarship

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• Gonzagas MBA-AIE Program

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GrAdUAtE n c diA

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• Shark Tank Challenge

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• Honoring Pueblo Research and Values

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Table of Contents

The American Indian Graduate Volume 15, Number 1

Volume 15, Number 1 • Spring 2016

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Message from the President AIGC Expands Undergraduate Scholarship and Services

by Michael E. Bird, President, Board of Directors

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Message from the Director Wells Fargo Partners with AIGC

by Joan Currier, Chief Operating Officer and Acting Director

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Publisher American Indian Graduate Center, Inc.

by Kim Baca

Production Editor Jim Weidlein Design and Layout Carolyn S. Tate AIGC Board of Directors Michael E. Bird, President Kewa and Ohkay Owingeh Pueblos

The MBA-AIE Program Gonzaga’s Investing In American Indian Leaders

by Malcolm Macleod

Looking Toward the Future My Story

by Paul Steward

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Editors Joan Currier Mario Ortega Stephine Poston Susan Duran

by Elizabeth Sumida Huaman and Carnell Chosa

Shark Tank Challenge From Concept to Company

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Website: aigcs.org

Honoring Pueblo Research and Values Educational Initiatives and Models from the Leadership Institute at the Santa Fe Indian School and Arizona State University

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A publication of the American Indian Graduate Center 3701 San Mateo Blvd., NE, #200 Albuquerque, NM 87110 Phone: (505) 881-4584 Fax: (505) 884-0427

A Cobell Scholarship Leading by Example

by Dezerae Yellowjohn-Hayes

Rose Graham, Vice President Diné Danna Jackson Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Walter Lamar Blackfeet Joel Frank Seminole Stacy Leeds Cherokee Nation Dana Arviso Diné Steven Stallings Rincon Band of Luiseno Indians

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Changing the Future Reconciliation

Holly Cook Macarro Red Lake Band of Ojibwe

by Geraldine Cavanaugh-Draper (Navajo/Spirit Lake Sioux)

Continued on page 4

The American Indian Graduate

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Table of Contents, continued

22

The Cobell Scholarship Choosing A Path

by Travis Teagarden

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Alumna Update A Research Career

by Naomi Jean Young, MD

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A Doctoral Experience A Model For the Creation of Empowered Women of Color

by Shannadeen Begay

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National Science Foundation The IGERT Program

by Dawn D. Davis Shoshone-Bannock & Sammy L. Matsaw Jr. Shoshone-Bannock, Oglala Lakota

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The American Indian Graduate

American Indian Graduate Center, 3701 San Mateo Blvd., NE, #200 Albuquerque, NM 87110, (505) 881-4584 phone, (505) 884-0427 fax Visit us On-Line! www.aigcs.org 2016 AIGC, Inc. All rights reserved.

Published submissions and advertisements do not necessarily reflect the view of AIGC, Inc.

Message from the President

AIGC Expands Undergraduate Scholarship and Services

by Michael E. Bird President, AIGC Board of Directors

A

IGC was originally founded to provide educational support opportunities for American Indian graduate students. In the decades that followed, our organization has grown in both its capacity to serve graduate students and its reach to support all levels of post-secondary education.

Technical schools. Undergraduate programs. Graduate and professional degrees.

The theme of this American Indian Graduate Magazine issue is all about the undergraduate.

I think back on my own experiences as a young man entering college. I remember my grandfather who impressed upon me the importance of education. I, too, was a recipient of an AIGC scholarship, which contributed to my education path. I consider my time as an undergraduate an important piece of my overall education experience.

This year, AIGC is introducing new programs, funded by a Wells Fargo grant, that include scholarships for American Indian and Alaska Natives pursuing bachelor’s degrees.

This year, AIGC is introducing new programs, funded by a Wells Fargo grant, that include scholarships for American Indian and Alaska Natives pursuing bachelor’s degrees. AIGC has commenced outreach efforts for this new scholarship opportunity, which will include regional community-based events for college bound students and their families. In 2016, AIGC will be administering the scholarship for undergraduates for Wells Fargo.

In 2015, AIGC also administered the first round of Cobell Education Scholarship awards. This program

Michael Bird

alone funded students from over 80 tribal nations attending more than 175 academic institutions nationwide.

The program made an impact on AIGC’s delivery of undergraduate scholarships.

AIGC also worked with REDW to create a scholarship for American Indian and Alaska Natives studying accounting. This annual scholarship was announced in 2015 for both undergraduate and graduate students in the accounting field.

The undergraduate is an important part of AIGC services and outreach. The undergraduate is part of all of us who completed an undergraduate program or have continued on to obtain graduate and professional degrees. As our organization continues to grow and reach new students, we embrace the undergraduate. We give them support to continue along their path. We encourage them.

I look forward to hearing of your successes, undergraduates. May your achievements be plentiful! ✦

Sincerely,

Michael E. Bird, MSW, MPH Past President American Public Health Association

The American Indian Graduate

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Message from the Director

Wells Fargo Partners with AIGC

by Joan Currier Chief Operating Officer and Interim Executive Director

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ur policy at AIGC is to keep our focus on the individual student, supporting her or his right to study any subject and make any career choice.

Experience shows that most of the students we come in contact with want to work with Indian and Native people – whether it be in their own community or another Native community.

In partnership with student support providers at the colleges and universities nationwide, we strive to surround our scholars with the resources that they need to be successful in achieving their educational goals. AIGC is persistently focused on scholarship retention, student graduation and entry into graduate school.

In 2009, Indigenous People’s Knowledge Community and Native American Network (NAN/IPKC) formed a network of Native professionals and researchers. As a result of their joining, NAN/IPKC developed a guide for student service professionals: Beyond the Asterisk: Serving American Indian Students in Higher Education.

The initial group later grew to a coalition of Native professionals, local, state and federal agencies, for-profit and not-for-profit community-based organizations and students to advance Native higher education.

It soon became apparent that there is a need for a Native American higher education student services organization for professional development, research coordination and American Indian policy advancement.

We know that there is tremendous interest in degree attainment and engagement in leadership roles by American Indian and Alaska Native people. Yet, we also know that Native students trail their peers significantly in participation in college opportunities, such as internships, mentorships and education abroad.

Through this contrast of aspirations against the opportunities and experiences to reach them, we see a clear need for an agent who will collect and evaluate opportunities for Native students.

Further, we see an organizational requirement to streamline available resources for students and facilitate connections. We identify a demand for an organization that can understand issues such as Native identity,

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The American Indian Graduate

Joan Currier

conflicting traditional values and socio-economic conditions particular to tribal communities. There is a need for an entity that can navigate the special role of family in a Native student’s life and how it pulls and pushes on that student’s educational experience.

As AIGC looks toward long-term service, our goal is to become a national entity responsible for the overall oversight of higher education attainment and success for Native people. In 2015, AIGC was the recipient of a Wells Fargo grant that extends our capability, over the next three years, to broaden our services and bolster our ability to fill a more holistic role in Native education attainment.

AIGC, which operates with a mission to improve cultural and economic wellbeing for individuals and tribes through graduate education – is poised to become an arsenal of services for tribal students and communities to successfully shepherd students through higher education and onto their professional aspirations.

One of our long-term goals is to help develop inventories of career opportunities in and near Indian communities. Our hope is that young people can see a clear path from education to employment – and understand that their future is brighter than it might appear to be.

AIGC also aims to secure data about American Indian and Alaska Native students to better quantify and effectively evaluate students currently pursuing post-secondary degrees. This kind of data can help AIGC connect with students where they are – within their degree programs.

The funding from Wells Fargo gives AIGC the capacity to support Native students in baccalaureate and

As AIGC looks to a long-term service goal, we aim to become a national entity responsible for the overall oversight of higher education attainment and success for Native people. graduate degree programs by offering a streamlined set of personal, financial and educational resources to help student success and opportunities for enhancements to their degree programs. The Wells Fargo grant also creates scholarship funds, for undergraduate students, that will enable AIGC to continue to impact successful pursuit and completion of undergraduate degrees by our community members.

Beyond graduation from their programs, AIGC’s goal is to continue to engage American Indians and Alaska Natives to celebrate higher education within Native communities.

Let me be clear that these goals do not change the services that AIGC currently provides, rather, they build upon our competencies to strengthen the individual student’s opportunity for success – filling gaps in services, from degree attainment to professional placement.

As AIGC scholars, friends and Alumni know as our peers at NAN and IPKC have reported and our partners at higher education institutions have seen, there is a need to truly focus on what services are available to support American Indian and Alaska Native higher education.

AIGC – through it’s networks and experiences – recognizes this need and is taking strategic steps to fill that gap.

Heartfelt thanks to Wells Fargo for their trust and investment in our communities. We commend their significant commitment to education and social change. ✦ Sincerely, Joan V. Currier Chief Operating Officer and Interim Executive Director

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The American Indian Graduate

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Honoring Pueblo Research and Values

Educational Initiatives and Models from the Leadership Institute at the Santa Fe Indian School and Arizona State University

by Elizabeth Sumida Huaman and Carnell Chosa

S

ince the late 1990s, The Leadership Institute (LI) at the Santa Fe Indian School, a culturally-based community development organization, had gathered quantitative and qualitative data in order to document and understand the content and impact of their Community Institute program. Over 40 institutes merged a convener think-tank structure, with Pueblo content and process, in order to deconstruct challenges facing New Mexico tribal peoples. Participants included returning Institute stakeholders deemed appropriate by tribal leadership and community members—from grant writing to policy recommendations. Four areas of concentration emerged in these discussions: major threats to Pueblo lifeways; elements vital for the survival,

sustainability and growth of Pueblo communities; the idea of Pueblo cultural values in practice and the critical nature of individual and group contribution, particularly through partnership. Most importantly, from listening to Pueblo community member voices, ten issues emerged as the most pressing for the New Mexico Pueblos to address: education, language preservation, land and cultural resources, environment, arts, law and jurisprudence, governance, health, families and communities economic community development. Each of these functions, in relation to each other, representing what Pueblo Community Institute participants believe needs to be intact in order to maintain community life. In 2012, over 400 Pueblo and other stakeholders convened at the Pueblo Convocation,

2012 Cohort members in partnership with Kahnawake Mohawk and McGill University, pictured at the Kawahnawake Longhouse

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where these ten issues were highlighted by Pueblo experts and LI Co-Director, Regis Pecos, whose theories on social movement are foundational to the work of the LI. At the end of the convocation, a comprehensive plan for next steps included addressing what to do with the information presented. In other words, what strategies were already in place and could be envisioned?

Identifying contribution-making has been central to LI strategic development since its inception and, in 2011, as part of the planning trajectory for the Convocation, the LI invited ASU into the conversation.

Appropriately Pueblo, these conversations began at the August Jemez Pueblo annual feast day, between Pueblo Doctoral Cohort concept visionary and LI co-Director, Carnell Chosa, 2012 Cohort members in partnership with The Sami Centre, University of and Senior Researcher for the LI, Elizabeth the Arctic (UArctic), Tromso, Norway (Manndalen, Norway dinner) Sumida Huaman. Sitting at Martha Chosa’s Feast Day table, surrounded by bowls of her bone stew and green and red chile, and laughing and talking among family, friends and colleagues, the Pueblo Doctoral Cohort was birthed. Working with co-lead faculty members in Justice and Social Inquiry, Dr. Bryan Brayboy and Dr. Elizabeth Sumida Huaman, the School of Social Transformation proposed to co-design, with the LI, a program of doctoral training that would, ultimately, emphasize the following: 1) Pueblo and Indigenous theoretical frameworks; 2) Mastery of broader discourses, including imperialism and globalization; 3) Deep understanding of all ten critical issues in a broader context of historical inequalities and indigenous justice; 4) Research experience at home and abroad and 2012 Cohort members in partnership with Crow Canyon Archaeological 5) Building of solutions through coursework Center (Mesa Verde, CO) and dissertation.

While the program valued the prior knowledge and efforts in Indigenous educational research were critinew research goals of the ten Pueblo Doctoral Cohort cal: “Creative individuals from traditionally oppressed members, there was also an explicit link to one of the groups, who know how to use the educational tools and LI’s imprints, “What will be your contribution?” This credentials they have acquired towards libratory ends, challenge brings together awareness of histories (tribal, unseat the assimilationist influence of Western schoolstate, federal and global), Pueblo cultural values and the ing” (Brayboy, 2005, p. 208). reciprocal responsibilities of the individual and the col The blending of strengths and talents from tribal lective. This coalesced with faculty scholarship and cominstitutions/tribal communities and higher education is a mitment to social justice and the belief that access should worldview that we believe leads to creativity and innovabe made readily available to those who have the most to tion and the commitment to maintain that drive. This gain from doctoral training yet, historically, have had the project represents one attempt to realize that worldview least access. In this regard, Dr. Brayboy’s groundbreaking Continued on page 14

The American Indian Graduate

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Shark Tank Challenge

From Concept to Company

by Kim Baca

V

ictor Corpuz, President of MaizeMob Skateboards, is quick to correct anyone who calls his business a company.

“It’s a movement,” says the 17-year-old LagunaAcoma High School senior, who created a skateboardingbased outlet combining art, boarding and traditional language, after parting with another company he was skating for and promoting their products on YouTube earlier this year.

Learning the fundamentals of the business through his past sponsor, Corpuz developed a system of support for himself and his friends learning Keres, the language spoken at Laguna Pueblo, N.M., while doing what they loved. He also decided to sell T-shirts and hats, with art he and his friends created, as a way to sustain their sport.

“We wanted to practice our language and we thought it was a cool idea to help promote our reservation and have a skateboard company of our own,” he said. “A lot

Corpuz is one of nearly a dozen Native American high school and college students in New Mexico getting a taste of entrepreneurship, with the help of AICCNM. Entering its third year, the chamber’s competition, modeled after the popular TV show Shark Tank where entrepreneurs pitch a panel of millionaires to obtain investment dollars, has awarded more than $3,000 to Native youth.

The Chamber incorporated a Shark Tank competition and youth workshops in its annual economic summit, in 2014, to provide mentorship and networking opportunities and encourage Native youth to enter business careers. Youth Impact Summit participants are given balance sheets during financial workshops and listen to business, community and tribal leaders discuss tribal economic development.

“We hope that, by bringing the community together in this way, every student will walk away with either an

“We wanted to practice our language and we thought it was a cool idea to help promote our reservation and have a skateboard company of our own.” of our communities have wonderful artists and I thought that it would be a good idea to promote them. People know skateboarding is not the traditional or conventional sport like basketball, football or track. But it’s something in which other kids can participate, if they don’t want to do the traditional school sport.”

When Corpuz saw the American Indian Chamber of Commerce of New Mexico (AICCNM)’s Shark Tank Challenge flyer posted at his school in May, he wrote up a business plan and entered—not expecting much.

Competing with other area high school students, Corpuz pitched his concept and won first place, which came with a $1,000 to invest in his vision.

“It’s a full-time business right now. School is a secondary thing for me, but I’m not letting my grades slip,” Corpuz said, adding that this business is more about “the language—it’s about being indigenous.”

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internship, mentorship, scholarship, entrepreneurial award, a job opportunity or networking experience,” said Russell Pedro, AICCNM Business Development Specialist.

Although college freshman, Evelyn Lazero, hasn’t decided on a major yet, she said participation in the youth summit has her thinking about studying business. Lazero (Assiniboine/Navajo/Laguna Pueblo), who was a senior at the Native American Community Academy (NACA) when she competed in the Shark Tank, won second place and $750 for her idea, United for Wellness, a summer program to aid eighth-graders, becoming freshman at Highland High School in Albuquerque, after learning about the high dropout rates of Native Americans at the campus.

Though Lazero has a business plan, she is still contemplating how to implement her business or if she still wants to proceed with the original concept. The prize

money, while helpful, wasn’t enough to fully leverage her idea. As a new college student, she had to pay for books—the award covered that.

“What I’d like to do is wellness,” said Lazero, 18. “I may have to do it for younger ages because I realize that I can’t handle middle-schoolers due to their mood swings. Another route I was thinking about was clothing, fashion, recycled clothing or doing something organic, something innovative, creative—something that gets people’s attention.”

Henry Jake Foreman, Lazero’s former teacher at NACA, who teaches digital arts and entrepreneurial skills based on indigenous values and tradition, said while many students who win prize money at AICCNM’s competition may not have a thriving business yet, it is an opportunity that these students may not receive otherwise.

“This is their first insight into what it takes to start a business,” said Foreman (Absentee Alicia Ortega (left) awarding Victor Corpuz (right) $1,000 for winning Shawnee/Filipino). “The long term goal is to first place in the 2014 Chamber of Commerce Shark Tank Challenge. invest in education. Really now is making sure these students within high school have mentorship and opportunities to continue their schooling.”

Foreman, last year’s Shark Tank winner, used his $500 Despite the rough beginning, Corpuz said he apprecash prize to obtain a teaching license, after graduatciated having this opportunity to jump-start his idea. ing from the University of New Mexico with a Master’s Prior to the contest, he and his friends would pool money Degree in Community and Regional Planning. He’s curgiven to them from birthdays, Christmas, selling burritos rently participating in the New Mexico Community and odd or part-time jobs, as seed money for the project.

Capital Native Entrepreneur in Residence Program, an “We were already doing things before (the contest)” opportunity he discovered while attending the 2014 Youth he said. “ ... Either way it would of taken a lot longer, we Impact Summit. He received a mentor and $15,000, as would have barely gotten the screen press now if I didn’t part of the residency, and has plans to create a business participate in that. For some people, it may have been a incubator at NACA. make or break thing but, for us, with the determination “I’m still working on my business plan and continuwe already had, we would have gotten there anyway. ing to make a viable business from that,” said Foreman, “I wasn’t really trying to do it for the money,” Corpuz who is teaching Digital Strategy and Entrepreneurial added. “It was just to show who we are. I just wanted to Innovation based on his plan. The class is now a requirego and present it to see if people really liked or believed ment by NACA before graduation. “As a teacher, a facilin our idea.” itator in this class, I’m explaining to students that any Kelly Zunie (Zuñi Pueblo/Cherokee), New Mexico resources, any opportunities and any networking will Secretary of Indian Affairs and Shark Tank judge, said always increase your chances at being successful in makinvestment in programs like these help change the Native ing your dreams a reality.” student mindset.

Victor Corpuz and his friends are learning first-hand “Many Native kids are given something, which gives what it takes to turn a concept into a company. Through a sense of being a victim or entitlement. These kids said, trial and error, watching a ton of YouTube videos and ‘I have a dream. I’m going to participate in this event and conducting research online, he and his friends learned I’m going for it.’ That’s empowering,” she said. ✦ how to screen-print. The effort yielded less than a dozen shirts, which were mostly sold to friends and family.

While he was able to buy what he needed—T-shirts, ink and a silkscreen press—to get MaizeMob started, Corpuz realized that $1,000 didn’t go very far.

The American Indian Graduate

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The MBA-AIE Program

Gonzaga’s Investing In American Indian Leaders

by Malcolm Macleod

T

he MBA in American Indian Entrepreneurship (MBA-AIE) provides Native American students with a rigorous and relevant MBA grounded in Native issues, connected to Native communities and taught by members of the academic, professional and Native communities. More than 50 Native students have received their MBA, since the program’s inception, and many have returned to their respective communities to take on significant leadership roles.

The MBA-AIE is delivered by Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. Students study at distance, during the fall and spring semesters, and attend classes on campus in Spokane for 6 weeks during the summer. Spokane is warm and sunny in the summer. Housing is available on campus and married students are encouraged to bring their families. Scholarships are available.

Student cohorts are small – typically 6 or 8 – and the students derive support from each other. Their

friendships endure and they become connected to a network of peers, from different tribes in diverse parts of the country. Another advantage of the small cohort is that students get greater individual attention from their teachers.

The MBA-AIE is unique. There is nothing like it anywhere else. The story of its creation and development is worth telling. It begins with the Johnson Scholarship Foundation, which was founded in 1991, by Theodore and Vivian Johnson, to “assist disadvantaged people to obtain education.” Mr. and Mrs. Johnson thought that they had been lucky in life and wanted to help people who hadn’t been as fortunate. They thought that education was the best way to help people. It had served them well in their lives.

The Johnson’s had a special place in their heart for American Indians and part of the Johnson Scholarship Foundation was dedicated to help the cause of American

Malcolm Macleod (second from right) with graduate students of Gonzaga University

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Indian education. Mr. Johnson died in 1993 and it was left to his son, Ted, and the Board to decide how this newly formed Foundation would help.

Ted Johnson, his wife Diane, and other Foundation Board members visited reservations in different parts of the country and sought advice from community leaders and educators. The advice was to concentrate on economic development. Indian people want to work. They need to work, but there are not enough opportunities.

The Foundation decided to concentrate on business education in Indian Country, with the idea that Native entrepreneurs and business people would grow the economy and provide opportunities for members of their respective communities. The Foundation began a scholarship program for tribal college students who wanted to study business and entrepreneurship. That program continues to this day and the MBA-AIE is an outgrowth from it.

The Foundation originally conceived the idea of an Indian MBA as a way to help tribal colleges boost the academic credentials of its business faculties. It would be taught at distance so that tribal college instructors could continue to teach during the academic year, only needing to physically attend MBA classes during the summer. The Foundation discussed its idea with a number of institutions and settled on Gonzaga University as the ideal candidate to develop and host this program.

Gonzaga was founded to educate Native students and the MBA-AIE program fits well with its original mission.

It has high academic standards. Gonzaga’s MBA is ranked among the top 25% in the country, yet it still provides a pastoral and nurturing environment for new students.

The first cohort of students arrived in Spokane in the summer of 2001 and graduated in May 2004.

The program and the theory behind it have evolved with experience. It quickly became apparent that ideal Continued on page 14

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The American Indian Graduate

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Honoring Pueblo Research and Values Contiuned from page 9

and draws from both LI philosophies and those Pueblo people, who first articulated alternative visions to a challenging present and future, and the vital research of dedicated faculty and leadership in Indigenous education and social justice—coming together to co-create and co-envision space for new approaches. So, watching ten newly-minted doctors in Justice Studies cross the graduation stage in May 2015, to the cheers of their families and the recognition of ASU President Michael Crow, is an astounding experience but only the beginning.

This program is one part of the larger work schematic that the LI and SST faculty do in their respective arenas, yet is a strong reminder of shared work that comes from acknowledging the power of community-minded research, culturally-based community development and, most importantly, what happens when Indigenous people remember what they have been taught and by whom. We are in admiration of our respective communities as we look towards what new work is to be done. This is best framed by Dr. Shawn Abeita (Pueblo of Isleta): “The loss of land and worldview, through loss of cultural traditions

and practices…is systematically being taken way from us.

In fact, 50 years from now, will our great grandchildren even relate to how we, as Native Americans, live today?

How will they view the legacies we are a part of and building today? How are we thinking of them now—making our reservations better for generations yet to come? As Indigenous people asking these questions, we must continue in the footsteps of our ancestors who fought so hard to protect our way of life” (Forthcoming in the Journal of American Indian Education). ✦ Acknowledgements: We thank the following individuals and groups for their service to the 2012 Pueblo Doctoral Cohort and 2015 Pueblo Master’s and Doctoral Cohort: The W.K. Kellogg Foundation; Dr. Bryan Brayboy; Regis Pecos; Diane Humetewa; ASU Regent LuAnn Leonard; Patricia Sandoval; Dr. Mary Margaret Fonow; Dr. Mary Romero; Dr. Beth Blue Swadener; Dr. Daniel Schugurensky; Ms. Nancy Winn; SST and ASU teaching faculty and leadership; the Center for Indian Education; Pueblo mentors; module course partner sites; cohort members, their families and pueblos.

The MBA-AIE Program Contiuned from page 13

candidates would come from all walks of Indian life and not just tribal college faculty. Graduates from this program would contribute to community and business in many different ways.

As of this writing, the MBA-AIE has 51 graduates, with another cohort of students graduating this spring.

How have these students done? What have they done? The overwhelming majority have returned to their respective communities. As expected, many are teaching and working at tribal colleges, including department heads and one Tribal College President. Many of the graduates have started their own businesses. Graduates occupy senior positions in local and federal government. Some head up local businesses or non-profit organizations. Others have started consulting or professional practices.

In 2013, First Nations Development Institute conducted a study of the impact of the Gonzaga MBAAIE program, Investing for Growth: Supporting the Next Generation of American Indian Leaders. Its report concluded that alumni from this program are helping tribal governments succeed and promoting economic development on Indian Reservations. More importantly, First

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Nations stated that the MBA-AIE “is successfully supporting the next generation of American Indian leaders... to guide community economic change for years to come in Indian Country.”

The Johnson Scholarship Foundation has invested over $18 million in its American Indian strategy and the MBA-AIE is a key part of that investment. The Foundation and Gonzaga University have taken steps to secure the future of the MBA-AIE. In 2014, they signed an agreement and committed funds to permanently endow a scholarship fund for its students.

Business development in Indian Country is no longer a fond hope. It is happening now. The Harvard Project on American Indian Development has reported that reservation economies are growing at a more rapid rate than their counterparts in other areas of the country. There is still much to be done. If you are American Indian or Aboriginal Canadian and want to be part of this story, you should consider the MBA in American Indian Entrepreneurship. It will help you to obtain the knowledge, connections and credentials you need to be of service to your community. ✦

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Areas of knowledge include: • Legal principles that guide Indian policy • Workings of tribal government • Energy and environmental law in Indian Country • Indian natural resource law and land titles • Indian civil and international rights • Jurisdiction in Indian Country • Indian family law • Water law and water rights • Advanced legal writing and research

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Looking Toward the Future

My Story

by Paul Steward

I

have a story for you, my story. My name is Paul Steward. I’m Pomo from Elem Indian Colony of the Sulphur Bank Rancheria. I’m an MBA student at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, CA and am going to grad school part-time, in the evenings, and working full-time. My job is professional musician; I am the Band Leader of the NAMMY winning Blues/R&B band, ‘Twice As Good’ (www.twiceasgood.org).

Graduate school is a lot harder than I thought! Lots of studying and work involved. No one in my family, or even my tribe, has taken their education as far as I have, so I didn’t have many people to give me guidance or insight; nonetheless, I am diligent and meet my challenges. My goal is to enhance my business and leadership skills so I can manage my music career to the best it can be, or perhaps join a company in which my position would be fulfilling to my life and career goals.

My tribe is small, we’ve had a long history of fighting. In fact, we erupted in gunfire in 1995 over our small casino (which has since been closed), causing an emergency evacuation of families who were in the crossfire.

That was when my dad, mom, siblings and I left the reservation and never returned. The violent group burned down my dad’s house and many other families’ homes. I was about 10 years old.

We relocated, eventually, to Santa Rosa, where I’ve been going to school ever since. City/suburb life is different than that of the reservation, good and bad, but no doubt influenced the path I am on today. Seeing myself as a poor Native youth, I didn’t think deeply about my future and, in high school, I didn’t think I had much of a future to look forward to, but I did enjoy learning and classes. I had many teachers that were kind and inspirational to me.

I also had my dad, Richard Steward, who was steadfast in encouraging me to pursue higher education. I kept on the path and today I’m a proud graduate, with a bachelor’s degree, on my way to obtaining a master’s.

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The American Indian Graduate

Paul Steward

I kept on the path and today I’m a proud graduate, with a bachelor’s degree, on my way to obtaining a master’s.

Like most Natives, my family doesn’t have assets or resources, so getting through college required scholarships and grants. Though today I am independent, I am still young and haven’t amassed wealth that many other American families have done over generations, so I continue to seek scholarships and grants. I am thankful for AIGC’s information and for the many Native people in my network who have helped me along the way. I dedicate all my success and achievement to them because, through teamwork, we can do greater things and to attain honor brings honor to one’s group. ✦

Going to Law School?

PLSI is for You!

P

LSI is the Pre-Law Summer Institute for American Indians and Alaska Natives, and it is the most widely known and respected preprofessional program in the country.

Established in 1967, PLSI alumni include a virtual Who’s Who in the fields of Federal Indian Law, Indian Policy, and Tribal Government. They are U.S. Senators and Representatives, Assistant Secretaries for Indian Affairs, U.S. Attorneys, Tribal Chairs, Law Professors and Deans, Directors of organizations such as NARF and AILC, Judges at every level, and many attorneys in Tribal and private practice.

If you’re planning to attend law school next fall, you owe it to yourself to apply to PLSI. You’ll not only prepare for law school, you’ll build strong relationships with Native law students at law schools all across the country which will last throughout your life.

Seattle University School of Law offers the full-tuition Douglas R. Nash Native American Law Scholarship.

The application deadline is March 25, 2016, so don’t delay!

Our Center for Indian Law and Policy provides educational and training opportunities that benefit students, tribes and communities.

Apply online at AILC-INC.org, or call us at (505) 277-5462 for more information.

Join our diverse student body and we’ll help you become a great lawyer and powerful advocate for justice.

Learn more at www.law.seattleu.edu/admission Above: Derek “Red Arrow” Frank was awarded the full-tuition Nash Native American Law Scholarship

AILC serves to build, promote, and honor self-sustaining American Indian and Alaska Native communities through education, training, and leadership.

Apply for free until March 1!

The American Indian Graduate

17

A Cobell Scholarship

Leading by Example

by Dezerae Yellowjohn-Hayes

G

reetings, my name is Dezerae Yellowjohn-Hayes.

I am an enrolled Quinault Tribal Member and I come from the Capoeman Family; my Grandmother is Barbara “Chee” Capoeman. I am a mother, wife, granddaughter, sister, daughter, niece, cousin and an auntie. I have always believed that education is the most powerful tool, which we as American Indian people, can use to change the world! From a young age, my father repeatedly reminded me that “education is the only thing they cannot take away from you”. This being said, I have dedicated my life to education. I like to say, “I am a lifelong learner!” I graduated from Montesano Jr. Sr. High School in 2002, with my H.S. Diploma; in 2005, I graduated from Spokane Falls Community College, with my Associate of Arts Degree; in 2008, I graduated from Eastern Washington University with my Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and two minors in American Indian Studies and Sociology. In 2010, I graduated from Eastern Washington University, with a Master’s Degree in Public Administration and, in 2012, I graduated with a Master’s Executive Certificate in Tribal Planning (also from Eastern Washington University). I

Dezerae Yellowjohn-Hayes

always been to build, promote, educate and honor selfsustaining American Indian communities. Today, as I travel throughout Indian Country, I lead with respect, striving to create critical programs for our tribal communities by guiding our people to their fullest potential, and promoting education and leadership along the way. The Cobell Scholarship has allowed me to continue my educational journey by opening the doors to new

I have dedicated my life to education. I like to say, “I am a lifelong learner!” currently attend Gonzaga University, where I am a PhD student in the Doctoral Program for Leadership Studies (DPLS), in part because of the Cobell Scholarship I was awarded for the 2015-2016 school year. This scholarship funding has helped to alleviate the travel costs (I travel over 1200 miles a month to obtain my education at Gonzaga University) and financial burdens that earning a graduate degree often cause.

As you have probably guessed, I started my journey in academia at a young age and have worked diligently to pursue my education in order to help lead my people to a place of certainty; a place of hope. My goal has

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The American Indian Graduate

opportunities. As I near the completion of my 3rd year in the Doctoral Program for Leadership Studies, you can only imagine the many obstacles I incur on a daily basis; however, I continue to keep trudging along, following in the footsteps of my ancestors. It is because of opportunities like the Cobell Scholarship that I keep moving forward; succeeding in the pursuit of fulfilling my educational dreams. I promise, as I continue this magical journey I call life, to always lead those who surround me, to encourage our young people and to lend a helping hand to those who need it along the way. By receiving this scholarship, I have been able to lead by more than

an example. This scholarship funding has allowed me to continue my academic journey and to act as a role model for the communities I serve. As many American Indian leaders push forward today, to create opportunities for those who will walk after us, I strive to do the same. I travel around Indian Country as not only a PhD student, researcher and writer, but to carry on our cultural traditions. My family is also part of the Powwow Trail and my son was recently crowned Little Warrior for the 2015 Skopabsh Powwow. At these sacred gatherings, I prepare my children for song and dance, I prepare my family, our communities and assist with all needed duties to continuously serve our people. In closing, I must say, I believe leadership is a gift; a gift that we learn from a young age by serving others. I believe a good leader is

a role model, whose actions speak louder than words. I also believe our American Indian leaders were servant leaders from the beginning of time, not leaders seeking domineering power and prestige. Our American Indian leaders have created a power that heals the heart of our nations, not a power that seeks to destroy the heart of our people. I strive daily to become a stronger leader, to guide those around me and, most importantly, to represent all of Indian Country, as I continue my journey in educational leadership. The financial support from the Cobell Scholarship is a true blessing. I will be forever thankful to the Cobell Scholarship Committee for allowing me to continue to touch the lives of our people, through love, leadership, education and stewardship. ✦

American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) Ad

The Buder Center for American Indian Studies is a premier graduate program in Social Work. We are committed to preparing and supporting future American Indian leaders to practice in tribal and urban settings, making significant contributions to health, wellness, and the sustained future of Indian Country The Buder Center’s Program: 

Provides opportunities for full scholarships to American Indian/ Alaska Natives from the Kathryn M. Buder Charitable Foundation



Offers a flexible curriculum that allows you to customize your course of study Presents course work focused on American Indian culture and values

 

Assists with securing your practicum through our established network of sites within American Indian communities



Provides assistance in career and professional development



Offers dual degree programs with architecture, business, law, divinity, and public health

Molly Tovar, Director One Brookings Drive Campus Box 1196, St. Louis, MO 63130 E-mail: bcais@wustl.edu Phone: (314) 935-4510 Fax: (314) 935-8464 Website: http://buder.wustl.edu

The American Indian Graduate

19

Changing the Future

Reconciliation

by Geraldine Cavanaugh-Draper (Navajo/Spirit Lake Sioux)

I

grew up on the Navajo reservation, in a community named Lupton, near the New Mexico and Arizona border. I was born out of the relocation era, when American Indians were moved to the cities from reservations, to find work and education. My mother and father both moved to Chicago in 1958, after spending their childhood and teenage years in boarding schools. After spending several years in Chicago, my parents went their separate ways and I grew up not knowing my biological father, who was from the Spirit Lake Dakota Tribe. My childhood and adolescence years became a tough time in my life, dealing with alcoholism within my family, having an absent father, enduring abuse of all forms and becoming part of the criminal system. My struggles continued well into my adult life and most would say that I endured the effects of intergenerational trauma, as well as my own trauma.

This is what I see when I am working with the Native population now and most are not aware of this concept of intergenerational trauma. It is extremely important to understand this when working with the Native population in the Social Work field. I am now 55 years old and have only begun to work on my own healing during the last several years, through community, my work and education. I am very excited to start on this next chapter of my life with the help of the American Indian Graduate Center.

I am excited that I will graduate, with my Bachelor’s of Social Work, in May 2016. I plan to begin the accelerated Master’s Program in Social Work, beginning the summer of 2016. I am currently undertaking my field placement, with the Primavera Men’s Shelter in Tucson Arizona, and will eventually work with this population. This program assists homeless males in acquiring the resources and skills needed to live independently and offset future crisis. In my current work with this program, I see that most of the users are American Indian. One concept that assists in how I deliver services to the American Indian population is of reconciliation. Reconciliation is the process of healing relationships that requires public truth sharing, apology and redress of past harms. Before American Indians

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The American Indian Graduate

Geraldine Cavanaugh-Draper

came face-to-face with outsiders, this process was already in place. For us, in this day and age, it is a matter of reconnecting to this concept of reconciliation.

Yes, all the people who are dealing with chronic homelessness and mental health conditions must first address their most important issue, which is survival.

This means finding a place to stay, a warm meal and clothing on their backs. Then, when that stability is in place, what next? This is where reconciliation comes in.

We must address the root of our modern psychosocial issues in order to heal ourselves emotionally, physically, spiritually and mentally.

Reconciliation requires action to address destructive impacts on American Indian education, language, culture, health, child welfare, administration of justice, economic opportunity and prosperity. I always say that education (i.e., boarding schools) is what got us into this mess, but I also believe that it will be the one thing that will get us out of it. Reconciliation requires sustained public education, dialogue and engagement of the history and legacy of historical and intergenerational trauma.

Education is a powerful tool and we must use it to the best of our abilities. I am proof that, at any age you can begin your healing. It’s never too late. You can go back to school and be an agent of change for your people. I understand that I will not be the only one to do it and there are plenty of like-minded people out there effecting that change. It is worth the hundreds of years of oppression and traumatic experiences, if I can effect change in one person or their family. ✦

The Cobell Scholarship

Choosing A Path

by Travis Teagarden

M

y name is Travis Teegarden and I am a Native American student from Tucson, Arizona. As a recent high school graduate, I am honored to be selected as a recipient of a Cobell Scholarship for the academic year 2015-2016. Like my mother, I am a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation in northwestern Montana. She (along with my father) taught me, from a young age, the importance of education. My mother grew up on the Reservation, as the middle child of eleven children, and had to work very hard and overcome many obstacles to become a college graduate. She first attended Haskell Indian Junior College (now Haskell Indian Nations University) and eventually graduated from Eastern Montana College (now Montana State University – Billings.) I am grateful for the opportunity to thank the American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) for their assistance, as I embark on my future studies as a freshman student at Northern Arizona University. It is an exciting time and I am working hard in my classes.

Being a recipient of a prestigious Cobell Scholarship has been a great help to me and to my family.

As I mature into adulthood, I am beginning to better understand and value hard work. I was an industrious student at Catalina Foothills High School in Tucson, quietly earning a total of 39 “A” and 10 “B” semester grades and ending up with a 3.8 grade-point-average out of a perfect 4.0 scale. These grades enabled me to earn a Lumberjack Scholarship at Northern Arizona University.

Additionally, I earned another scholarship through my home tribe, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation. As a Class Member in the Cobell settlement, receiving the Cobell Scholarship was just icing on the cake; along with my other scholarships, it has enabled me to attend NAU and have tuition, books, room and board completely covered. You see, hard work does pay off!

But… I am fully aware that this is just the beginning.

It will continue to take a lot of hard work on my part to maintain my scholarships. So, I press onward. I look forward to taking classes that are both interesting and challenging in the future.

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The American Indian Graduate

Travis Teagarden

The Cobell Scholarship is truly a Godsend for my family and me. My mother, who has significant health issues, was forced to medically retire from her job several years ago. In addition, my father is a high school mathematics teacher and we all know how underpaid teachers are – especially in Arizona (the 49th lowest annual salary out of 51, according to most sources). So my parents’

I am fully aware that this is just the beginning. It will continue to take a lot of hard work on my part to maintain my scholarships. ability to significantly finance my college education was limited. Thus, in addition to my participation in some extracurricular activities in high school, during my junior and senior years, I worked at a national fast-food chain restaurant and saved most of the money I earned, to help pay for my college expenses. Thankfully, my grandparents (my dad’s parents) also have been helpful in this regard. Having support – from parents and grandparents to aunts, uncles and cousins – has been both vital and inspirational all my life. I am grateful.

As a first semester undergraduate freshman, I don’t know what I will eventually choose as my major of study.

The life experiences of my parents and grandparents are impactful and may end up having an influence on my eventual decision. The blessing of good health and the scourge of illness make me lean toward a degree in the health field, helping to ease the suffering of others. On the other hand, my father, grandfather and aunt have all touched the lives of others by teaching in the classroom and that appeals to me as well. Teaching seems to be in my blood.

Even though I did not grow up on the Reservation like my mother, I think often about returning to the beauty of northwest Montana and sharing my talents with the youth of the Reservation. Then again – who knows – maybe I will discover some completely different course of study – an avenue that, as of now, is hidden from view. It’s a pathway that I’m looking forward to traveling, thanks to a Cobell Scholarship administered by the American Indian Graduate Center. ✦

Lemlmts!

Thank you!

Attention AIGC Alumni Attention AIGC Alumni: To insure that we have all your current information, please take a minute to visit our web site (aigcs.org) or send an email to (susan@aigcs.org) to update your information. Be sure to include your previous address so we know we have the right individual.

We’re very proud of all our alumni, so… while you’re updating your information, please let us know what’s been going on with you. Also, if you would like to submit an article for our magazine, about your educational experience and how education has changed your life, we would welcome your story.

Alumna Update: A Research Career

by Naomi Jean Young, MD

N

aomi Jean Young, MD, is Navajo of the Dzíł Ahnii Táchíí’níí (Red Running into the Water Clan) and born for Tábaahá (Water’s Edge Clan). Her maternal grandfather is Tódích’íi’nii (Bitter Water Clan) and her paternal grandfather is Táchíí’níí.

She is from Sawmill, Arizona, a Window Rock High School graduate and graduated from the University of Arizona, majoring in Molecular and Cellular Biology and minoring in American Indian Studies.

Between college and medical school, Dr. Young was a stem cell researcher at the National Institutes of Health, in Bethesda, Maryland, and was a United States Congressional staff member in Washington DC. Upon deciding to go to medical school, AIGC supported her as she entered graduate school, studying Anatomy and Neurology. After graduation from the University of Arizona College of Medicine, she worked

on American Indian health policy in the Office of Health and Human Services Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius. Dr. Young was a Ganado High School freshman science Teacher and Ganado Middle School track coach and is currently entering her final year of Family Medicine Residency, at the University of Arizona South Campus Program. While in residency, she is assigned as team physician for the Walden Grove High School football team, is pursuing an elective rotation in Uganda, Africa, for her Global Health requirement and is entering the IRB process for research, regarding American Indian childhood obesity. Upon completion of Family Medicine Residency, she is anticipating the start of her career with the Indian Health Service. She enjoys long-distance running, coaching middle school track and working on the ranch with her cattle. ✦

The American Indian Graduate

23

A Doctoral Experience

A Model For the Creation of Empowered Women of Color

by Shannadeen Begay

A

n open-minded woman of color, who is also Native American, may go into graduate school with the intent of diversifying her experiences.

Openly identifying Native mentors and STEM professionals will rarely be found in a research-intensive institution. In this case, the struggle between culture and educational success will be faced in every situation. The process of finding a cultural mentor, at levels you experienced in previous American Indian settings, eventually becomes fatiguing.

One barrier is that it is difficult to always check for cultural compatibility, implicit biases and other signs of non-support from a person designated to lead you in your educational experience. If one takes the leap into an unknown field, the chances of success will depend on an extended and outside support system, your personal resilience and your self-drive (among other characteristics).

Your advisor, dissertation advisory committee and other scientists are understood as experts in their respective fields of study. They are rarely identified by an institution and affirmed by the institution to be 100% supportive and empowering to your chosen career development, while actively considering the incredibly wonderful diversity-within-diversity that you will bring into the learning environment. While conventional wisdom strongly recommends that people set boundaries to protect themselves from all the detrimental “–isms” that exist in higher education, it is simply not possible to envision and prepare for all of them.

Learning: 1. to be empathetic, tolerant/and/or kind, 2. how to draw and negotiate reasonable boundaries, 3. to understand to utilize the public policies that govern your institution and 4. utilizing mechanisms for whistle-blowers is necessary, when these conflicts-of-interest overwhelm participants in these situations.

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The American Indian Graduate

Shannadeen Begay

If one takes the leap into an unknown field, the chances of success will depend on an extended and outside support system, your personal resilience and your selfdrive (among other characteristics).

Taking the test for, and learning about, Implicit Bias and other “–isms” that affect our agency is a good start.

Reading books about healthy mentor/mentee relationships and having an Individual Development Plan are essential to your progress, with minimal support. A book I found most helpful in developing an identity, within a hierarchical system, was the book about reinventing the doctoral experience. It had lists of policy reports, small focus groups and other organizational bodies that had gone out and done some of this work. It is a rewarding and pleasant experience to see what cultural explorers have mapped for you – try taking their advice and recommendations and see where it takes you!

Continued on page 28

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National Science Foundation

The IGERT Program

by Dawn D. Davis Shoshone-Bannock & Sammy L. Matsaw Jr. Shoshone-Bannock, Oglala Lakota

T

he Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program, initiated in 1997 and now comprising approximately 125 award sites, continues into its sixth annual competition. The IGERT program has been developed to meet the challenges of education U.S. Ph.D. scientists, engineers and educators, with the interdisciplinary backgrounds, deep knowledge in chosen disciplines and technical, professional and personal skills to become, in their own careers, the leaders and creative agents for change. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education for students, faculty and institutions, by establishing innovative new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. It is also intended to facilitate greater diversity in student participation and preparation and to contribute to the development of a diverse, globally engaged science and engineering workforce.

IGERT is a national Science Foundation (NSF) endeavor involving the Directorates for Biological Sciences (BIO), Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE), Education and Human Resources (EHR), Engineering (ENG), Geosciences (GEO), Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS), Social, Behavioral and Economic Science and Engineering (INT).

Currently, we are Native American students pursuing doctorates under the NSF Integrative Graduate Education Research Traineeship (IGERT) in Water Resources at the University of Idaho (UI), where we are part of a very unique and progressive program. The UI IGERT consists of a dynamic cohort of students with various academic backgrounds. Together, we have the potential to unite disciplines to develop innovative research, as well as provide our individual cultural insight and incorporate indigenous thought into the UI water resources IGERT. As IGERT students, we have engaged in several conferences, including a transboundary Colombia River Treaty conference in Canada, the Pacific Northwest Climate Change conference and will also participate in

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The American Indian Graduate

a winter course abroad, in January 2016, to Concepción, Chile.

“As an awardee of an NSF-IGERT fellowship, my goal is to conduct research that will have Dawn Davis an impact upon water resource policy, as it relates to global environmental change and tribal nations. The Fellowship has been the catalyst to achieving my academic goals and contributes to supporting my family. I have also been fortunate to work with supportive faculty, who recognize the importance of implementing traditional ways of knowing and acknowledge the benefits this type of research will have holistically. I am truly grateful to be part of this program and am appreciative of those individuals who have contributed towards this achievement.”

–Dawn D. Davis Shoshone-Bannock “At the beginning of the program we are sent out to improve our professional development during a summer internship. I was supported to spend time among elders, scholars and doers, who recognize the challenges for tribes in the 21st Century. The overall theme was centered around food, Sammy Matsaw energy, housing and science, through indigenous ways of knowing. I am still connected to these individuals, who are teaching me the importance of Mitakuye Oyasin. The teachings are ongoing and my professional development, as an indigenous scientist, continues to improve. I am honored to take part in such an opportunity and working with the supportive people involved.” ✦ Sincerely, Sammy L. Matsaw Jr. Shoshone-Bannock, Oglala Lakota

Social Workers Advancing through Grounded Education (SAGE): Building Capacity for Mental and Behavioral Health in Indian Country The SAGE project will recruit, train, and financially support Native and non-Native students as they complete 360 hours of their concentration practica. SAGE students are awarded paid practicums and will complete their field education either in American Indian/Alaska Native Country or with American Indian populations, providing students with the necessary experience to transition into employment in Indian Country.

PRACTICUM REQUIREMENTS: Practicum should focus on Mental/Behavioral Health; Practicum should focus on working with either at-risk children, at-risk adolescents or at-risk transitional age youth; Practicum must take place either in American Indian country or with American Indian/Alaska Native populations; Students must participate in Center for Violence & Injury Prevention events; Must be a student at Washington University’s Brown School COURSE REQUIREMENTS: To be eligible for the SAGE grant, students must take two courses from the American Indian Track and two courses from Mental Health or Violence Prevention/ Intervention Track To request an application or for additional information, contact Molly Tovar, Director of the Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies and Professor of Practice at 314-935-7767 or mtovar@wustl.edu.

Download an application at buder.wustl.edu/SAGEproject

CAREER DISCOVERY

Harvard University Graduate School of Design

June 13–July 22, 2016 “An unparalleled opportunity to explore the world of design.”

Innovative ▪ Integrative ▪ Collaborative Accepting applications for Ph.D. traineeships on adaptation to change in water resources.

Doctoral traineeships begin in June 2016!

Architecture Landscape Architecture Urban Planning & Design

www.uidaho.edu/igert email water@uidaho.edu or call 208-885-2018

gsd.harvard.edu/careerdiscovery 617-495-5453

The American Indian Graduate

27

A Doctoral Experience Contiuned from page 24

A document for negotiating reasonable boundaries can be created when generating an Advising Plan with the Principal Investigator (PI) of your dissertation research. Such plans should include areas of boundaries, expectations and strategies for optimal communication. Policies of the lab, for both the advisee and a dvisor, should be included for optimal relationship building.

Statements on academic trust, research group ethics and

would like to discuss person-to-person with other people who may be familiar with your circumstances.

Finally, there may be aspects of your diverse identity that will be nearly impossible to share with anyone in your educational experience. What may help is to write in a journal about this issue and use thinking exercises to evaluate what it means to you to share this part of yourself with others. Leadership is developed in such niche mean-

Once a year, ensure that your rights are being protected and your experience is represented as valid and empowered, using mechanisms in your community. lab procedures should be referenced with unique specificity to the student’s needs. Students and PI’s should give a copy of this to their Dissertation Advisory Committee (DAC) and have it reviewed yearly with the Chair of the Department, as necessary.

If you do find you have a serious grievance, based on your own analysis, the process to report, verify and move beyond the experience will build your self-advocacy, diligence and emotional intelligence. Once a year, ensure that your rights are being protected and your experience is represented as valid and empowered, using mechanisms in your community. For example, taking time once a week to read about pending legislation that supports people bullied in the workplace, or better yet, writing in support of that measure as a grass-roots voice, will give you the types of experiences that will build your support system in a self-affirming manner.

While higher education is modeled as focused, introspective and intensive on your chosen topic of exploration in STEM, remember to ask for help. When I taught at MIT, one of the slogans in the offices that supported students was this: “Does it look like everyone else has it all figured out? Maybe they asked for help!” As you find issues impeding your progress, you must practice asking for and expecting the assistance of designated social and cultural support systems. Another resource is college student organizations on campus, which may have workshops on how exercising economic control over your future earnings will help you today.

Once you are on track, think about joining an accountability circle. One such group helped me to itemize and discuss my barriers with a group of peers. This gave me a tool for clear follow-through that was important in building my professional persona. Join a mentoring cluster and meet periodically if you have some personal issues you

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The American Indian Graduate

derings. If you decide to share these aspects beyond selfreflections, enlist others to help you find a champion to your cause; someone to help guide your budding revelations. Through this journey, remember to enjoy the adventure of public disclosure and appreciate your uniqueness.

If all else fails, you can always have someone emergency ship you some achee and bluebird flour to drown your sorrows. Aye’ Joke! ✦

THE AMERICAN INDIAN GRADUATE MAGAZINE

Targeted Readership:

Over 16,000 American Indian and Alaska Native students, graduates, professionals & organizations

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The American Indian Graduate Center 3701 San Mateo Blvd., NE, #200 Albuquerque, NM 87110

American Indian Graduate Center Alumni: What will your legacy be?

“As alumni, it is essential for us to support organizations like AIGC that provide funding to Native American students who will be our future tribal leaders, attorneys, doctors, engineers and other professionals. I call on my fellow AIGC alumni and others who are committed to Indian Country to join me in ensuring that these scholarship opportunities continue to be available to future generations.”

—Alvin Warren (Santa Clara Pueblo) Master in Public Administration, Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government

“I am so thankful that AIGC exists to advocate and provide much needed scholarships to Native American students. Now I can use my law degree in my staff attorney position at New Mexico Legal Aid for the betterment of tribal communities.”— Neomi M. Gilmore, JD (Navajo), University of Idaho College of Law (pictured left)

“Whereas I started in a position of needing money, now largely because of AIGC, I can give money; I am a donor. That truly brings things full circle.”—Shenan Atcitty, Esq. (Navajo), University of New Mexico School of Law, J.D.

DONATE TODAY! CALL (505) 881-4584 Or make a donation on our website at aigcs.org Or mail your check to: American Indian Graduate Center 3701 San Mateo Blvd. NE, #200, Albuquerque, NM 87110

Other ways to give: In-kind donations • Corporate & event sponsorships • Advertise in the American Indian Graduate magazine • Planned giving Or make a Combined Federal Campaign Pledge (CFC #11514 ) Your contribution to AIGC may be tax-deductible under Section 501(c)3 of the IRS code.

Visit aigcs.org