Meet Ulrick Francisco, a social services major from Sells, Ariz. attending Tohono O’Odham Community College. Ulrick will join us for the next year as a contributing blogger on the Think Indian Blog. Ulrick was inspired to earn his degree in his hometown through...
On Friday, the Fund’s staff was given a rare treat: the opportunity to hear from both a TCU president and TCU student in one day. The presentation highlighted their challenges, successes, and overall vision for their tribe’s future. Sharing these words were President of Little Big Horn College, Dr. David Yarlott, and a first-year business student, Riley Singer.
The flu season this year started early and is hitting the U.S. hard. American Indians and Alaska Natives, including college students, are at high risk for getting the flu and developing serious complications. The time is now for people to benefit from getting the vaccine.
When many American Indian students study at mainstream institutions, they experience culture shock. For many, it is the first time away from a close-knit community. For others, it is their first experience away from the reservation. Transitioning to a life on a large campus can feel alienating and unwelcoming. Iva, a member of the Blackfeet nation who had lived in the reservation her whole life and a graduate of Blackfeet Community College in Montana
Growing up in an urban environment was not easy for us. A lot of nights we weren’t sure whether or not we would eat dinner. It was in the Eastside of London Ontario, Canada where the struggle of survival and the knowledge of the “real world” began. We were not exposed to our culture other than at powwows; we were not familiar with our traditional languages, nor did our family participate in ceremony. As adults we understand the power of ceremony, culture and prayer; this is something that we agree is beneficial if it is present every day.
Growing up on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation in south central South Dakota was a real experience. I have seen things that people only get to imagine as they read a book. Heck, some people in this country do not even know where South Dakota is.
For me, this time of year means travel. It means recruiting for a program I care deeply about – the University of Colorado Upward Bound Program. My trips begin with a flight to a small town like Durango, Colorado or Fayetteville, North Carolina or in the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Sometimes I fly all day just to end up on a little commuter plane with two-seats on each side of the aisle, and fly through turbulence to land in a different place in a new state.
went to work for the Blackfeet Tribe fresh out of high school. I planned to work for just a year, and then go to college. That year turned into 22 years. I went to college for the first time in my life just short of my 44th birthday. Had it not been for the Blackfeet Community College, I might not have ever gone to college. True, I had to start commuting 50 miles round trip again, but the upside was that my husband agreed to join me. He hadn’t ever gone to college either.
spent summers with family in Kaibab. When my aunt would speak Paiute to me, I did not understand at the time that she was trying to teach me the language. I did not know what she was saying to me and I would ask my cousin to translate. Her reply was that I needed to ask my aunt what she was saying to me.
In 1961, during his inaugural address, President John F. Kennedy delivered the memorable line in which he emphasized, “Ask not what your country can do for you- ask what you can do for your country.” While he meant to apply this statement to the United States and the world at large, I feel that it also applies to Indian Country and my personal philosophy of “Think Indian.”
