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Many of us have joy-filled childhood memories of dress-up days and pretending to be someone famous. St. Joseph’s Indian School’s third-grade teachers, Melissa and Jen, combined these two happy pastimes for their students in a wax museum experience in March. The day coincided with on-campus parent-teacher conferences, so families got to join in the fun.

Nineteen students wore period clothing related to a historical figure of their choice. Each child studied their person and prepared to act the part. When prompted by the push of a button, the mannequin-still students came to life and recited their biographies. Continue reading “Young Historians Create Wax Museum at St. Joseph’s Indian School”

Tomorrow is Earth Day! At St. Joseph’s, we believe we can all do our part to recycle a little more and waste a little less.

Did you know St. Joe’s has tote bags available for a donation? There are so many different patterns and colors — a few even feature inspiration quotes! Rather than going to the grocery store and ending up with a wad of new plastic, single-use sacks, you could reuse your St. Joe’s totes over and over again when you’re shopping! Continue reading “This Earth Day Deal is Tote-ally Awesome!”

A day at the pool at St. Joseph’s Indian School is a popular pastime during all seasons. We’re blessed to have an indoor pool within our campus Recreation Center.

While so much about this area of campus signifies fun, it’s no mystery why St. Joseph’s takes pool and water safety so seriously for the Native American children who call our campus home. Continue reading “A Splishin’ and a Splashin’ at St. Joe’s Pool Centers around Safety”

Richard Two Two has had many titles already during his young life. He’s been called son, brother, student, husband, dad, corrections officer and more. But, recently he added another title to that list — one he wears with humble acknowledgment of the responsibility it holds: Chief of Police in the small town of Kimball, SD.

The journey to reaching this Chief of Police position wasn’t one that was always on Richard’s radar. However, life can often have a way of leading people where they should be. Richard’s journey has brought him this opportunity, and he seized it. Continue reading “St. Joseph’s Indian School Alum Named Chief of Police”

So much good takes place in the St. Joseph’s Indian School Rec Center every day. Whether it’s through organized athletics, a dip in the pool or a workout session in the weight room, Native American children and young adults are learning the importance of movement.

But, the building in its current state can only allow for so much. The existing facility was constructed in 1974, almost 50 years ago. A nearly half-century old building means there are many shortcomings. In fact, the list of shortcomings is becoming longer than the list of positives. Continue reading “St. Joseph’s Rec Center to Receive Renovation, Expansion”

The Lakota (Sioux) culture is rich with tradition and St. Joseph’s Indian School looks for ways to honor and connect our students to their culture as much as possible. One of the ways we do this is by providing an inípi.

Inípi, also known as a sweat lodge, is a basic purification ceremony of the Lakota (Sioux), as well as other Native Americans. It’s a ceremony offered several times a year for students, and holds great depth of meaning. Continue reading “Inípi Ceremony Connects Students to Their Culture and Each Other”

Students at St. Joseph’s Indian School celebrated what likely everyone in the area has been thinking – “I Hate Winter Day.”

Students slurped red and blue slushies and munched on popcorn while a team of five judges viewed beach home projects constructed for the day. Categories were first-third grade, fourth-sixth grade and seventh-eighth grade. Continue reading “St. Joseph’s Indian School Celebrates ‘I Hate Winter Day’”

March is Women’s History Month and March 8 is also International Women’s Day! We thought we’d take a look at the historical significance of Native American women, as well as the role Native American women play now in the present and into the future.

Traditionally, Native American women played an essential role in their tribal communities. While women were in charge of the more traditional matriarchal roles within the tribe, they also had an array of other responsibilities. Yes, they were wives and mothers, but they were also builders, farmers, craftswomen, cooks, teachers, nurses and more. Continue reading “Growing and Empowering Strong Girls for the Future”

St. Joseph’s Indian School is proud to announce it has awarded 67 scholarships to Native American students this spring semester!

This recent round of awards brings the total for the school year to a record $213,970! This spring, the school granted awards to 16 St. Joseph’s alums, nine alum family members and 42 other scholars enrolled in a federally recognized tribe and pursuing higher education. Continue reading “St. Joseph’s Indian School Awards $95,000 in Spring Scholarships”

Imagine you wake to the sound of your alarm sounding in the morning. You groggily turn over to shut it off, while your mind’s eye sees bits and pieces of the dream you were having prior to being woken up. Maybe you see blurry shapes or figures and you’re left with a feeling, but you can’t quite grasp what it was you were dreaming about.

For children living in one of South Dakota’s nine reservations, life can sometimes be a bit like this. They dream of a brighter future, but perhaps lack the opportunities to realize that dream — to see it through clearly. Continue reading “St. Joseph’s Indian School Helps put Dreams into Focus”