He Sapa Oyate - Geoscience Community at the Heart of Everything
NSF Grant - Opportunity for Enhancing Diversity
The South Dakota School of Mines, Sinte Gleska University, and Humboldt State University, with support from the National Science Foundation, sponsored a series of camps for Lakota youth from Rapid City, SD and surrounding areas to nurture a geosciences learning community linked to culturally significant sites in the Black Hills, which were sacred not only to the Lakota but other Plains tribes, such as the Cheyenne, the Arapaho and the Kiowa, and to increase the participation of Native people in the geosciences. These camps utilized outdoor, experiential learning to integrate indigenous knowledge and science with contemporary western science.
To summarize, the goals of this project were to:
- Support community and school district efforts to encourage American Indian students to graduate from high school, academically prepared to succeed in STEM disciplines at the college level.
- Recruit American Indian students into the geoscience programs at SDSMT, and increase achievement and retention of these students.
- Expose American Indian students and members of their extended families to geoscience career opportunities.
- Raise goescience awareness across the broader Black Hills community.
Some things said about the camp:"He absolutely learned so much... excited about everything... couldn't wait to share"
"...Wonderful experience..."
"...Helped... [him] decide what he wants to go to school for"
"...Perfect..."
"...Loved all week..."
"...Great..."
For More Information, View:
High Plains Regional Science and Engineering Fair
