Progress 09/01/16 to 08/31/19
Outputs
Target Audience: Our target audience for the Empowering our Lakota/Dakota Youth and Veterans through this grant was primarily, the youth on Standing Rock and our Veterans. We worked with the local schools and the Warrior House, an establishment set by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to support the Veteran population who are Tribally enrolled on Standing Rock, but may or may not live on the Reservation. We also worked intimately with the Juvenile Detention Center and the Courts on Standing Rock with our Youth Program, for those adolescents who have been involved in drugs/alcohol/ or other abusive situations which have then disenfranchised them from the larger community on Standing Rock. Changes/Problems:No changes or problems occured during the grant period. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Staff attended conferences and workshops centered on the ability of horses to heal, and experienced new training techniques for our horses and ourselves. It has been documented that adolescents and Veterans who suffer traumatic experiences are at risk of suffering further mental health problems in later life. In cases of prolonged traumatic experiences, the ability of an individual to successfully rejoin their peer group and create positive, sustainable attachments is highly jeopardized by past situations, often beyond their ability to control. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Grant information is presented to Sitting Bull College Board of Trustees on a quarterly basis. Sitting Bull College's Board of Trustees are elected officials from each of the eight districts on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. The board members then take the information that is presented to them and disseminate to their local district at monthly meetings. The target audiences for this grant was our youth and Veterans on Standing Rock. For the youth, we reached out to all of the schools and our treatment centers. For our Veterans, we worked primarily with the Warrior's Lodge, a Standing Rock facility supporting local Veterans of the Lakota/Dakota Nation. We have a half-hour radio program on Standing Rock on KLND 89.5 that SBC has each week. We are on each month, sometimes more often, keeping everyone updated on the work we are doing. Standing Rock also has a local paper, The Teton Times, and we have done a number of interviews in the paper, highlighting our programs. SBC has a paper also, this month we had a half-page article on our activities and programs. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Equine assisted theory workshops were held for youth and veterans throughout the grant program. The workshops attendance ranged from 25-30 students. The workshops were expanded to the Immersion Nest which is a K-4 Lakota/Dakota classroom on Sitting Bull College campus. To assist with this project, we purchased two small ponies, extremely well broke.In addition, an archery class is held as a physical education requirement for degree seeking students at Sitting Bull College during the spring semesters. All activities are designed to allow participants to learn the skill and technicques that have been culturally important to the Lakota/Dakota people.
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Progress 09/01/18 to 08/31/19
Outputs
Target Audience: Our target audience for the Empowering our Lakota/Dakota Youth and Veterans through this grant are primarily, the youth on Standing Rock and our Veterans. We work with the local schools and the Warrior House, an establishment set by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to support the Veteran population who are Tribally enrolled on Standing Rock, but may or may not live on the Reservation. We also work intimately with the Juvenile Detention Center and the Courts on Standing Rock with our Youth Program, for those adolescents who have been involved in drugs/alcohol/ or other abusive situations which have then disenfranchised them from the larger community on Standing Rock. Changes/Problems:No changes or problems occured. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Staff are able to attend conferences and workshops centered on the ability of horses to heal, and experienced new training techniques for our horses and ourselves. It has been documented that adolescents and Veterans who suffer traumatic experiences are at risk of suffering further mental health problems in later life. In cases of prolonged traumatic experiences, the ability of an individual to successfully rejoin their peer group and create positive, sustainable attachments is highly jeopardized by past situations, often beyond their ability to control. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Grant information is presented to Sitting Bull College Board of Trustees on a quarterly basis. Sitting Bull College's Board of Trustees are elected officials from each of the eight districts on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. The board members then take the information that is presented to them and disseminate to their local district at monthly meetings. The target audiences for this grant 'Empowering Our Lakota/Dakota Youth and Veterans through Horses and Language' are our youth and Veterans on Standing Rock. For the youth, we reached out to all of the schools and our treatment centers. For our Veterans, we worked primarily with the Warrior's Lodge, a Standing Rock facility supporting local Veterans of the Lakota/Dakota Nation. We have a half-hour radio program on Standing Rock on KLND 89.5 that SBC has each week. We are on each month, sometimes more often, keeping everyone updated on the work we are doing. Standing Rock also has a local paper, The Teton Times, and we have done a number of interviews in the paper, highlighting our programs. SBC has a paper also, this month we had a half-page article on our activities and programs. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Our horsemanship activities have been expanding for the Immersion Nest which a K-4 Lakota/Dakota classroom on Sitting Bull Campus. To assist with this project, we purchased two small ponies, extremely well broke. We are still doing EAL with our yuth and Veterans, and general Horsemanship.
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Progress 09/01/17 to 08/31/18
Outputs
Target Audience:Our target audience for the Empowering our Lakota/Dakota Youth and Veterans through this grant are primarily, the youth on Standing Rock and our Veterans. We work with the local schools and the Warrior House, an establishment set by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to support the Veteran population fwho are Tribally enrolled on Standing Rock, but may or may not live on the Reservation. We also work intimately with the Juvenile Detention Center and the Courts on Standing Rock with our Youth Program, for those adolescents who have been involved in drugs/alcohol/ or other abusive situations which have then disenfranchised them from the larger community on Standing Rock. All of our work is done through EAL - Equine Assisted Therapy - with our prfessional, Phillip Bird Horse and our intensely trained horses.. Changes/Problems:This is not a usual type of problem that one might expect in a report, but ours is a unique program, deeply held in our cultural ways. The major problem we experienced was the loss of one of our horses, a younger stallion who had a generous heart and was able to reach pretty much anyone. It is a powerful statement wheneveryone who knew him, worked with him, felt his warmth, grieved in some way at his passing. Wecontinue with our work, but there is a noticable difference at times, as people look around for him, and then realize he is no longer with us. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We were able to attend conferences and workshops centered on the ability of horses to heal, and experienced new training techniques for our horses and ourselves. It has been documented that adolescents and Veterans who suffer traumatic experiences are at risk of suffering further mental health problems in later life. In cases of prolonged traumatic experiences, the ability of an individual to successfully rejoin their peer group and create positive, sustainable attachments is highly jeopardized by past situations, often beyond their ability to control. Under these types of situations, traditional methods where you come in, sit in a stiff chair for maybe an hour, and bare your soul, they just don't always work, and there is no room for each person to be different. We talk about 'flexing a horse' that means you see how he moves to the left, to the right, maybe he favors one side, maybe he won't bend at all to the left, so you work with him, slow, easy, you help him learn to maneuver, and if you're watching the horse, and understand him, you know when he is tired, has had enough. In regular therapy for people, there is often a lack in that flexibility, for you to control your own entrance and exit. So what happens is, we're putting increased pressure on a person in a situation meant to help them heal. Horses don't do that, they often 'read' us better than we read them (Phillip Bird Horse, personal communication 2018). Our being able to attend these workshops and conferences allowed us to also share our methods and ideas with other Tribes, whoich is paramount if we are going to progress. We all experience the same issues on our Reservations, drugs, alcohol, and the repercussions of war. We all hold very unique cultural norms, and it is through our cultural identities with our horses and language on Standing Rock that weare finding a way to heal. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The target audiences for this grant 'Empowering Our Lakota/Dakota Youth and Veterans through Horses and Language' are our youth and Veterans on Standing Rock. For the youth, we are reaching out to all of the schools and our treatment centers. For our Veterans, we work primarily with the Warrior's Lodge, a Standing Rock facility support for the local Veterans of the Lakota/Dakota Nation. We have a half-hour radio program on Standing Rock on KLND 89.5 that SBC has each week. We are on each month, sometimes more often, keeping everyone updated on the work we are doing. Standing Rock also has a local paper, The Teton Times, and we have done a number of interviews in the paper, highlighting our programs. SBC has a paper also, this month we had a half-page article on our activities and programs. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?This grant 2016-47002-25517Empowering Our Lakota/Dakota Youth and Veterans through Horses and Languagereceived a one-year no-cost extension, so for the remaining months we will continue our workshops with our Youth and Veterans as listed under 'Other Outputs" and transition intothe work on our new Extension Special Emphasis grant 2018-04723 Sitting Bull College Youth Horsemanship Club (Centered on Horses, Traditional Games, Food, and Language.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Our principal outreach is to the community in general, and then to our youth and Veterans, through our workshops, many of which arelisted under 'Other Products'in this report. Through the numerous workshops offered, we have been able to instill hope in our youth, and show our Veterans a way back into their communities and families in a culturally held manner with our horses and our language. The disconnect and isolationthese two groups experience through abusive settings and engagement in war, can be near insurmountable, but we are giving them an opportunity to experience success and healing in a manner that is culturally sensitive, and responsive to their needs.
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Progress 09/01/16 to 08/31/17
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences for this grant 'Empowering Our Lakota/Dakota Youth and Veterans through Horses and Language'are our youth and Veterans on Standing Rock. For the youth, we are reaching out to all of the schools and our treatment centers. For our Veterans, we work primarily with the Warrior's Lodge, a Standing Rockfacility support for the local Veterans of the Lakota/Dakota Nation. Changes/Problems:Our archery instructor, Aubrey Skye resigned, but I (Margaret Knox) have been able to cover the workshops.I learned bowhunting as a teenager, and have won numerous archery events. I beleive my competency is more than adequate, as demonstrated by the positive responsesthe workshops are received. Tom Red Bird, who also learned archery as a child, and hunted for his family on a regular basis, he joined me in the workshops, and together we brought a dynamic program to all of the participants. Phillip Bird Horse and Tom Red Bird are developing workshops on bow-making over the summer to see what interest there is in developing these hands-on techniques. So far, interest is strong, and we are struggling to keep each workshop at 12 individuals. Tom and Charlie Thunderhawk, who is also Tribally enrolled at Standing Rock, are searching for Lakota/Dakota songs regarding horses and hunting and making/carrying of bows, and intend to teach these songs during the workshops. Therefore, although we lost Aubrey, I feel we have more than overcome the loss. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Phillip BirdHorse and Tom Red Bird participated in two Equine Assisted Learning (EAL)workshops that took place over the course of a week. Both have been invited in the past, and now again, to present their methods at these workshops. These opportunities strengthen and deepen their understanding of horses, allow them to share their knowledge with others, and create opportunities for us to engage with other Tribal entities, thus broadening our reach into communities. Margaret Knox presented on the work being done at the annual 2017 Association of American Geographers conference in Boston in a round-table discussion of the Indigenous People's network. Margaret shared photos and inteviews with those involved in our program, thus creating an opportunity for both discussion and further collaborations with others present at the conference. We are also taking advantage of extra-local expertise, and have invited folks to come for demonstrations in archery and horsemanship on our campus.This grant will provide the funding needed for these types of training. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We havebeen interviewedfor the Tribal Paper, and been on the Tribal radio program regularly. We have also written up short articles for the paper. We also post announcements in the local stores, and at the community halls. And, as we continue to collaborate with other entities in various Trical Colleges, they post our events and our accomplishments in their papers and on their radio programs. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We plan to continue our activities and workshops through the summer, responding to the interest of the communities by offering more outdoorevents as the weather improves. We are offering horsemanship and archery activities, as oneof our studentsstated:' Whenever I'm using a traditional bow, you feel like how they felt probably whenever they used to hunt buffalo. It feels really cool to shoot how they used to shoot.' This student also represented SBC at AIHEC in archery. And one of our Veterans said, ' I like how I feel when I work with the horses, and learning even just a little bit of my language that we lost so many years ago, that is the thing that heals you, puts you back in connection with the Elders and a time when things were joined better, when we were a strong and healthy people.' These types of statements, and the interest we are seeing in the horsemanship and archery and language, are direct evidence of how important culturally significant programs are to the community here on Standing Rock.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Engage youth/Veterans in Equine Events: three horsemanship/Equine Assisted Learning events have been held each month, with between 15-30 participants in each event. These events build knowledge and competency within individuals and help them to strengthen their cultural ties, make positive choices, acquire life-skills and self-assurance, and improve their overall health and wellness. Also, as individuals engage with other community members on SRSR, they broaden their personal support-base, which has been shown to increase success rates when making personal changes in an attempt to become healthy. Engage community members in archery: our archery workshop has 12 participants in it, who are learning archery skills and the historical and cultural relevance of archery to the Lakota/Dakota People. We are implementing basic language skills and some of the oral history of archery into the weekly meetings. Attendance is strong. We are also incorporating archery into our horsemanship and EAL events, which everyone thinks is fun and educational. As there is significant interest, we areincreasing ourarchery instruction and incorporating it more deeplyinto our Horsemanship Program over the summer. Everyone has noticed that practicing with the bow and arrow has increase their physical activity, and the cultural aspects that Tom Red Bird brings to the sport strengthens individual identity.
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