Native sons and daughters
New grants enhance services
of American Indian
program
Some days, the director of NMSU's American Indian Program (AIP)
longs to be with his family at the Taos Pueblo instead of in his Garcia
Annex office. As he misses the pueblo's annual feast days, Harry Lujan,
'70, gestures to his heart and says softly, "But home is in here it's
something that you have in you that never leaves."
Except for this fleeting bout of homesickness, Lujan is proud to
have devoted his professional life to encouraging Native Americans to
attend NMSU and then helping them to succeed once they do come to the
campus. AIP offers counseling, tutoring, help with financial aid/career
development, intramural activities and several computers for students.
Lujan is especially pleased with the success of the programs and
organizations available to American Indian students and believes recent
grants will further enhance these services.
One such grant - $724,000 from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation - will
connect NMSU to New Mexico's four tribal colleges in a student outreach
program designed to link American Indian students with professors from the
College of Arts and Sciences, who will develop seminars and research
projects.
A $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation
earmarked for the computer science department will cover expenses for
installing computers and providing support for Native American schools
throughout the Southwest.
Grant money for other programs is also becoming available. Tom
Hoeksema, professor emeritus, who works at the Development Office, is
soliciting - and receiving - corporate and private donations to fund a
Navajo language class in the fall of 1999. The idea came from students and
the American Indian Program Advisory Council, which offers recommendations
for developing programs while honoring cultural heritage.
But even without these recent developments, the 450-plus American
Indian students' needs are being identified and met. "What we try to do is
to make sure students feel at home here. Many come from remote
reservations or pueblos, and we try to ease that transition as much as
possible," explains Juan Franco, who handles minority programs in his role
as vice president for administration.
Lance Lujan, director of the Indian Resource Development Program,
encourages American Indians in the fields of agriculture/home economics,
business and engineering in a state-wide program. His office, based at
NMSU, hosts a New Mexico science fair for Native American students in
grades K-12, and this year will jointly sponsor the National Native
American Science Fair. The publication the IRDP originally produced for
NMSU, Sources of Financial Aid for Native American Students, is
distributed throughout the United States.
"I'm guardedly optimistic about the headway we're making here,"
Lance Lujan says. "As we approach the year 2000, we need to have a new
cadre of educated leaders because the move on the part of congressmen has
been to cut funding for these important programs," he adds.
Harry Lujan believes there is a need for NMSU "to grow our own
professors" and wants to see more American Indians pursuing graduate
studies.
For the approximately 54 percent of Native American students who
do graduate from the university, the future looks bright, according to
Steve Salway, director of Career and Placement Services. And although many
do not find employment in their own communities because job opportunities
are just not there, the dream to return to their tribes and use their
education to benefit their people is a very real prospect for a number of
NMSU American Indian students.
Silver City student takes care of business
Arlen
Davis is president of NMSU's Native
American Business Students
Association
(Photo by Michael Kiernan) |
Arlen Davis is president of NMSU's Native American Business Students
Association
With graduation approaching, Arlen Davis, a senior from Silver
City, N.M., who is majoring in business
management, says his family is pleased with his progress at NMSU.
"And they can't wait for me to graduate," he says with a grin.
Although he found the transition from high school to university life to be
difficult, he made friends and improved his study skills by taking
advantage of the programs and activities available to American Indian
students.
Davis, president of NMSU's Native American Business Students
Association, is also a member of the United Native American Organization
and regularly uses the computers and study space at the American Indian
Program office. |
NABSA holds fry bread sales and also hosts the Miss Indian NMSU
pageant along with the traditional dress fashion show held during American
Indian Week each spring. Proceeds from fund-raisers provide a $500
scholarship for Miss Indian NMSU, who promotes Native American activities
on and off campus.
Of Pima and Papago descent, Davis attends NMSU with the aid of a
scholarship provided by the Hill River Indian community near Phoenix. He
plans to find a job in his field of study until he can achieve his dream -
to run his own business.
Miss Indian NMSU shares her culture
Martha Daily's
traditional dress has special
meaning for her. |
For the traditional talent portion of the Miss Indian
NMSU pageant, Martha Dailey, a senior environmental engineering student,
demonstrated the sacred art form of Navajo sandpainting - explaining its
origins and how it was passed down to her from her grandmother and
mother.
She was chosen to represent the Native American community of NMSU during
American Indian Week last spring, and she has taken her role as student
ambassador seriously. Dailey, who is from Shiprock, is eager to share
her
culture with organizations, students and individuals throughout
New
Mexico. The traditional dress she wears has meaning for her, as all of the
pieces were handmade and given to her by tribal members she loves and
respects. |
The fan she carries is crafted from
feathers from the eagle,
"which is viewed as the highest-flying bird and able to carry our
prayers," she explains, and her shawl was a gift from her father, who
received it from his grandfather.
Navajo grad student hopes
to work on reservation
Vivie
Maryboy, standing, works in the American
Indian Program
study/computer
lab
where she
often assists other students, including Monica
Talachy,
seated. (Photo by Michael Kiernan) | Vivie Maryboy,
standing, works in the
American Indian Program
study/computer lab where she often assists other students, including
Monica Talachy, seated.
As a child, growing up in Kirtland, N.M., Vivie Maryboy regularly
visited her grandparents in a rural area on the Navajo Reservation. While
there, she often helped her grandparents with chores - especially when the
livestock needed to be branded or vaccinated.
She hopes to return to these roots one day, equipped with an
education and ideas of how to improve land conditions. "After graduation,
I
hope to gain experience anywhere I can and |
then take it
back with me to
the reservation - a lot of our culture deals with
agriculture," Maryboy
says.
She received her bachelor's degree from NMSU's College of
Agriculture and Home Economics last year and is pursuing graduate studies
in range science.
Maryboy feels that her time spent at NMSU has been a positive
experience, saying she likes the area and the people, even though she is
disappointed by the misconception that all Native Americans are the same.
"We're all American Indians, but we're all unique - each tribe is
different," she explains. The young woman serves as vice president for the
United Native American Organization and belongs to the American Indian
Science and Engineering Society. She works in the American Indian Program
office, where she can be found encouraging others to excel in their chosen
fields.
Blazers are leaders in careers, as volunteers
Arthur, '75,
and Karen Blazer, '79 |
Breaking new ground is nothing new for Karen Blazer, '79, and
Arthur Blazer, '75, who have used their education to improve the lives of
other Native Americans throughout their varied careers.
Karen, a dedicated athlete, was the only Native American who
played on a varsity women's team (NMSU Roadrunners) in the Four-Corner
region during her undergraduate days of the early 1970s. From the time she
obtained her master's degree in education administration from NMSU, she
has taken on demanding work that benefits American Indians throughout the
West.
She began her career as a high school principal in New Mexico and
Arizona and was the first Native American administrator for the
200-year-old Navajo United Methodist Mission School in Farmington. She is
currently the director of personnel and administration
for the school
district of the |
Alamo Navajo Reservation. She calls her
career "very
rewarding and definitely challenging - but you grow with those
challenges," she observes.
The energetic woman, who has received numerous honors and awards,
including an NMSU Distinguished Alumni Award in 1996, tackled another
challenge in December, when she was elected president of the American
Indian Alumni Chapter.
"We are struggling as a new organization," she concedes, but says
she is optimistic about the direction of the group, which will join
efforts in recruiting Native Americans to NMSU and recognize and establish
honors for outstanding students.
Karen's husband, Arthur Blazer, '75, is also making a difference
in the lives of his people in Mescalero. "That's what makes it worthwhile
to come to work everyday," he says of his job as natural resource manager
with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. After graduating from the
NMSU-Alamogordo with a degree in range conservation, he was named
Mescalero Agency range/wildlife specialist. He also served as Albuquerque
Area natural resources manager, Ute Mountain Agency superintendent and was
director of the Albuquerque Area office and Laguna Pueblo Agency
superintendent. "And in 1997, I returned home - it feels good to be back,"
the Mescalero Apache says.
Arthur Blazer also is proud to serve as president of the Native
American Fish and Wildlife Society.
Stories by Pamela Porter, '92