"I am not an enrolled member of an American Indian tribe, but my grandmother is, and I do consider myself to be American Indian. I soon will be graduating from the College of St. Scholastica with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education-Ojibwe language and with a minor in American Indian studies. I spend a great majority of my time learning about my culture, analyzing the achievement gap with American Indian children, and searching out solutions to many problems that hinder American Indian people from reaching their full potential.

I continuously find that lack of financial stability and support on both the parts of the dominant society and the reservation are struggles in achieving goals, including my own.

The article suggested the younger generation of American Indians is lazy or unmotivated. That was a generalization I had a hard time accepting. I’ve always held a job. I graduated from high school with honors, and I will soon graduate from college.

Although I do not receive a per-capita payment from the reservation, I am entitled to some benefits as a descendent. If I did not have the grants and scholarships from the Department of Indian Education, one-time tuition assistance from Fond du Lac, and free health care, I would probably be on a much different path today. I credit my accomplishments to my own hard work — but also to the assistance I have been blessed with."

Get the Story:
Kyra Paitrick: No simple answers to myriad woes facing American Indians (The Duluth News Tribune 6/4)
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Earlier Story:
Painful emergence (The Duluth News Tribune 5/25)