My hometown, Unalakleet, is an Inupiaq village located in the Norton Sound region of Alaska. We get a great deal of wind in our area because Unalakleet is located right on the coast: the Bering Sea. The town consists of about 750 people year-round. Most residents are of Inupiat Eskimo descent. The non-Natives that reside in Unalakleet are mostly teachers.
Last week I accompanied five American Indian College Fund Scholars to the United Health Foundation’s Annual Diverse Scholars Forum in Washington, D.C. These students have been supported by the United Health Foundation with scholarships to pursue degrees ranging from physical therapy and exercise science to nursing and health occupations.
I remember the cold winters we had in the past, but this winter most likely beat the record low. Temperatures below zero are very common for Alaskan winters. Our winters typically last from mid-October to the end of May. This year we didn’t get our first snowfall until early November, so we thought maybe “Global Warming” was finally taking its toll. Boy, were we wrong! It wasn’t until January that the cold really hit us. It slapped us in the face!
I am Therese. I just completed my first semester at the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I am on Create My Canvas Path, majoring in studio arts and museum studies. My Native affiliation is what I refer to as “mixed media”-Native, Mayan, and Mexican.
My name is Lee. I grew up in Duluth, Minnesota and I’m an enrolled member of the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe. I’m a full student at Leech Lake Tribal College and will be entering my second year of college in the fall. I will be transferring to the University of Kansas to complete a degree in biochemistry.
Hello all! My name is Amber. My Inupiat name is Kapuqqaq (pronounced “ga-bu-kuk”). I am a tribal member of the Native Village of Unalakleet, located on the Northwest coast of Alaska. The community itself consists of roughly 750 people year-round.
As many scholars celebrate their way across the stages at graduation many proceed with a sense of personal style and expression. I remember attending a graduation for the University of Notre Dame and there a row of graduates collectively spelled J.O.B.L.E.S.S across their graduate caps. Others, like a group of students from my own graduation at Texas Tech University, sent out messages honoring family or appreciation to those who helped them make this milestone accomplishment possible.
It is always great to get out and meet our students. At the 31st annual American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) Student Conference in Rapid City, South Dakota, we had that chance. Native students gather to participate in competitions and celebrate the work they do at the tribal colleges as they pursue a college education and prepare to make a difference in their communities.
You don’t have to wait until you are attending a tribal college to learn a Native language. There are now applications for mobile phones for learning Lakota and Navajo from tinkR; Labs.
Navajo Toddler was released last year, and teaches children the words for animals, colors, and phrases. This year the company is preparing to launch the Lakota app with the same features.
Many Native students are entering health care fields to stem the tide of diabetes that is engulfing Indian Country. However, you don’t have to give in to the thought that diabetes is inevitable just because you are Native. Sure, it’s important for Indian Country to have trained health care workers to treat those who already have been diagnosed with diabetes, but the war on diabetes is best fought with prevention.
