Helping Native American children – Page 4 – St. Joseph's Indian School

Guest Blogger: Gina

Fr. Steve and two Native American students working on the computer. — Who is teaching who?

What a year our students have had! The biggest change was me!! My name is Gina and I teach computer class.

I came to St. Joseph’s in September fresh out of the business world. Together, the students and I grew by leaps and bounds. Among a lot of new skills acquired , the first and second graders now know what a CPU (central processing unit) is, what the letters stands for, and what it does. Besides improving their typing skills every class period, they delved into programs such as KidPix and MS Word making graphic pictures and posters.

The best part of helping kids at this level is the moment when they “get it” and they realize they do. There was one young boy who consistently had a LOT of trouble just signing in to the computer with his name and password. Shortly after Christmas break, he was in class and I heard a big shout out from behind me, “I DID IT ALL BY MYSELF!!” and he threw up his hands in triumph!

He had finally mastered signing in without help from me or his neighbors. I went over and high-fived him, and the ear-to-ear grin on his face said it all! That was worth every struggle he had weathered, just to see the sense of accomplishment and pride he had at that moment.

The third graders learned many new things in Word and KidPix also, but their final project was learning an internet based program called Little Bird Tales where they wrote a book titled “All About Me.”

They had fun drawing scenes from their lives and writing a sentence about it. When they finished their project, the stories were printed and bound so students could take them home and share with their families.

Monster's at St. Joseph's Indian School. — Joe’s monster he drew for the Monster Exchange!

The fourth and fifth graders did a Monster Exchange project where they drew a “monster” in the Paint program and then wrote a description of it to exchange with the other class. They then had to try and draw the other class’ monster from the description. The results were quite interesting to say the least! They learned that drawing from the description was not as easy as it seems.

The upper classes (sixth through eighth) learned a lot about Microsoft Office and its programs. For one of their projects, each student made a PowerPoint presentation about themselves and their life at St. Joseph’s. They learned all about the bells and whistles of the program. They LOVED to have the computer applaud for them as they started their presentation!

One of the best projects we did this year was with the eighth graders in collaboration with the Social Studies class. They are required to write a research paper and present it to the school, so we worked together to complete the project. We did assignments that would benefit them not only in computers but would also be some of the work they had to do in Social Studies. I really enjoyed doing this as it showed the kids that the stuff we do in class does have an actual real life purpose. I really hope next year I can do more projects like that.

All in all it has been a very productive year for us. I am looking forward to finding new and fun ways for them to learn all about technology.

Authors of their own destiny

Graduation packed our chapel with students, families and our staff. When St. Joseph’s only went up to eighth grade, several traditions were started to make a big deal about this level of graduation. Now, we tell students we hope this is the first of several graduations, but we still celebrate with lots of pomp and circumstance. Twenty-one young men and women proudly walked down the aisle of the chapel, while their houseparents read a brief bio of their home and tribe, favorite memories of St. Joseph and future plans. Most (18 or 19) will stay with us next year and continue in Chamberlain High School.

Marcel Felicia at St. Joseph's Indian School's graduation. — Marcel Felicia congratulating one of the recent graduates.

Marcel Felicia, who graduated in the same place in 1975, was our graduation speaker. He just completed a Master’s degree in Public Health Administration.

He told the Native American students that while there are a lot of chapters of their book of life yet to be written, they are in large part authors of their own destiny.

The next chapters depend on the choices they make, so he urged them to make good and wise ones. Due to generosity of donors, we had scholarship money available to help Marcel further his education. He told me that it had long been a dream, but the scholarship helped make that dream a reality.

A candle burned on the altar, symbolizing our many donors whose generosity makes a good education here possible. We ran an internet campaign where folks could light a candle for their hometown and include an inspirational message of support to our students. When I last checked, something like 3,400 people from across the country had logged in with heartfelt messages of congratulations!

A slide show montage of students’ childhood pictures brought back memories. When I first started at St. Joseph’s this group of youngsters was in the first grade. One student has no childhood pictures from early years, which is sad. We put together happier memories of his school days here.

Native American student saying, "Pilamaya - thank you!" — “Pilamaya – thank you – for making a difference in my life!”

Each student passed out two roses and several cards to family or staff members who have made a big difference in their lives. I’m always touched to see one of our teachers, counselors or houseparents who frequently are the recipient of one of the roses because of their care and guidance.

I enjoyed meeting and celebrating with the students families. Some have been very involved in campus activities, but some I met for the first time. I hope to see all of them throughout the high school years, and especially in another celebration four years from now.

An incentive to strive harder

Our staff reading group discussed the book “Growing Up in the Care of Strangers.” About a dozen helping professionals, who were once in foster care or group homes, looked back to share their stories in the book, many of which were filled with great tragedy and pain. They provided many insights not only into what children go through, but what can be done to help improve the system. Multiple placements, splitting up of siblings, high turnover in staff – all these make the life of a child in placement stressful and difficult. One common theme that came across over and over was to find ways to give children a voice in addressing their needs.

Through our last strategic plan, and our work with Child Trends to identify ways to measure student growth, we are increasingly working with focus groups of students to hear their concerns, ideas and hopes.

Reading some of the heart wrenching biographies gave us all an added incentive to strive even harder to accomplish that.

St. Joseph’s Minute to Win it

Tonight the Rec Center hosted a “Minute to Win it” fundraising event to benefit our local Relay for Life Chapter. As a cancer survivor myself (2 years now!) I am grateful for the generous efforts of people in our community in solidarity with those battling the disease. Many of our campus homes baked treats to sell in the concession stand and folks made a free will offering as they came in the door. We had plenty of laughs as students, staff and people from the community competed in fun and silly games.

I arrived in the middle of the competition, and was immediately dragged into a game where I had to bounce a pencil on the eraser end and land it in a plastic drinking glass ahead of me. I astounded myself and the cheering crowd by landing all eight pencils into the containers in under a minute. (Now people know what I truly do in my office all day!) I didn’t fare so well later in trying to slide a cookie from my forehead into my mouth. But, everyone had lots of laughs for a great cause.

Circle of Courage: belonging, independence, mastery and generosity

A group of 14 college students and faculty members from Penn State New Kensington visited our area. With a grant from Rotary International, they gifted and installed new computers for the Cheyenne River Indian Outreach (also known as the Sacred Heart Center) in Eagle Butte. They spent the day on St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus here learning about our programs and interacting with students. This evening all our high school students gathered in the dining hall, with our visitors interspersed throughout the tables to talk about college life and encourage our kids to consider pursuing higher education. One young woman spoke about what it was like to be the first in her family to attend college, which many here could identify with.

Our 1^st – 4^th graders engaged in a Battle of the Books via telephone conference with our two sister schools in Mississippi. Each class read five books and the students were quizzed on the contents. All the battles were close, with about 85% correct answers. Even those who were not perfect still came out ahead by the very fact they read the books, processed, remembered and advanced their critical thinking abilities.

We are working with a group called Child Trends to gauge our student achievements during their time with us at St. Joseph. Two researchers were on campus to hold focus groups with different age groups. Several families have also been interviewed. We aim at instilling the values from the Circle of Courage – belonging, independence, mastery and generosity. We want to help students mature in life skills as well, which goes beyond the standardized testing we can measure in the classroom. Child Trends is helping us find ways to measure if we are able to actually help students grow in those areas of values. I’m very interested in reviewing their findings.

Day trip for the William’s Home

It is hard to believe that the school year is coming to a close and our fifth graders will be moving on to new homes next year.

Some of our Native American girls standing at the zoo entrance. — The William’s Home had a great day trip!

The William Home has been busy. Last weekend we took a day trip to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to visit the Washington Pavillion and the Great Plains Zoo. The weather tried not to cooperate at first but by the time we were ready to get to the zoo it had cleared up for us.

The Pavillion is a very interesting and educational place and the girls are able to do a lot of hands on activities dealing with science. They really enjoyed getting into the tornado demonstrator where they were able to feel 78 mile per hour winds and their hair really told the true story.

The zoo is always a great experience and we spent a lot of time feeding the animals in the petting zoo area. We have had a great year with this group of fourth and fifth graders. Though it is always sad to say goodbye to our fifth graders, we are just as excited for the girls that will be moving up next year.

Student successes and living drug free

Greetings once again from St. Joseph’s Indian School in Chamberlain, South Dakota. Fr. Steve Huffstetter, SCJ is away on another donor luncheon to New Hampshire and Maine and thus I have the opportunity to again share what’s been happening this week here on campus.

Fr. Steve relayed what took place during the Mission Awareness presentation given by our confreres in northern Mississippi on Monday and Tuesday. It was a rewarding and inspirational time.

On Wednesdays our rec center staff sponsors Enrichment Night during which various homes take part in activities that encourage teamwork and fun. This past Wednesday Perky and Cyr Homes had the chance to practice some soccer drills and then play the game which resulted in hot action but ended in a tie. Later the girls of Stevens and Mathias Homes had to figure out how to work together passing water from one can to another with some interesting restrictions which even drew the houseparents into the action. They finished off the evening with a softball game.

Our Principal, Kathleen, recently asked teachers to share moments of student success that highlight the progress they have made this year. It has been wonderful to hear how some students are coming out of their shell and becoming more confident. Progress is taking place in the classroom and concern for others is being witnessed as those who understand the assignment are helping fellow classmates. Some still have issues they need to face but they are getting a handle on things and not letting them disrupt the daily activities as easily as they may have in the past. Your prayers and generosity have helped provide an environment where this growth can take place as students, teachers, counselors and houseparents work together to help each other make progress.

Our Director of Alumni, Mary Jane, put out word about five former St. Joseph’s students who, because of your generosity, have received scholarship help which has enable them to graduate with two-year degrees in Business Management, Nursing and Automotive Technology. She also mentioned that 10 other alumni, who have also benefited from scholarship help, will be graduating from two and four-year programs. Pilamaya – thank you – for the generous help you offer to those who have gone forward and continue to prepare themselves to offer their skills and talents to help their people.

Spring Sobriety art for 2012. — Congratulations to Trinity, our sobriety art contest winner!

The 17^th Annual Sobriety Walk is supposed to take place today, but we are not sure about what the weather will be like. Some predictions are saying there is a 80% chance of rain with cool weather and wind gusts of 20-30 miles per hour. Hopefully this will hold off so that the students can make the walk. We have the students and staff divide into four groups that walk around Chamberlain wearing a student designed t-shirt that witnesses this year’s theme, “Live Drug Free.” The walk ends back on campus with a school-wide picnic—weather permitting—and then there are activities for the younger grades and a presentation for the upper grades by someone local who has struggled with alcohol and drugs. There is a Plan B, should the rain and wind come, but please say a prayer that the walk may be able to take place.

Hope your week has been a good one and that the weekend ahead will be rewarding and relaxing. Thanks again for your interest in and support of St. Joseph’s Indian School. We pray for you and your intentions during the Sunday liturgy each week.

Sincerely,

Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ
Chaplain
St. Joseph’s Indian School

Pride and accomplishments at St. Joseph’s Indian School

Our Board of Directors meeting is over. Most of the meeting was taken with budget issues. The Board voted to accept the budget as it was presented. Besides keeping on what we’re already doing, it will allow us to move ahead with the Strategic Plan that we laid the groundwork for. While the Board meetings generally go well, with good feedback, evaluation and challenge, it feels good to have them finished. I always feel a bit tired and drained when they are over. But I also had feelings of pride when my staff presented what each of the departments has accomplished this past year.

One benchmark we’ve been working hard at is high school retention. The efforts seem to be paying off. While nearby schools fight a nearly 50% drop out rate, we still have 38 of the 40 high school students who started the year. The two who left St. Joseph’s Indian School are currently enrolled in high schools back home, and hopefully will be part of a generation that completes school and sets their sights higher.

Who is easier, boys or girls?

Due to some staffing changes, last month I found myself moving from my comfortable world of teenage girldom, to that uncharted territory of testosterone known as the high school boys’ homes. I was a bit nervous at first. I haven’t lived in a house full of teenage boys since I graduated from high school umpty-scrunch years ago. My hazy memories of life with 4 brothers included garage bands, broken bones, girls calling all hours of the day and night, and mechanical objects being taken apart and reassembled with varying degrees of success. So when I stepped into Sheehy Home and saw the drum set, the crutches and partially disassembled remote control, at least it felt familiar if not entirely comfortable.

We were debating this in a staff meeting earlier this year. Which group is easier: high school girls or boys? Hands down, people seem to think that girls are harder. Sure, “boys will be boys,” meaning that they end up in the ER with freak accident injuries from jumping over couches or doing handstands. Sure, boys leave towels all over the floor. How do they use so many towels and why? I don’t know. But girls? Girls are “emotional”. No, girls have subtly nuanced levels of emotional upheaval that would be hard to plumb with a PhD, a compass and a troop of Avon representatives. Or so I’m told. But I sure do miss them.

So I’m off to a new adventure, one that, according to popular wisdom will be infinitely “easier” than the journey I have been on. Right now, I can rely on the wise counsel of people who have already established relationships with the boys. Or I can even ask what would Jesus do in this situation. Not that he ever had 18 teenage boys to take care of. But he must have had some dealings with adolescents because he made a whole sermon about them: blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall take the middle seat and save all of the rest of mankind from the wrath of the driver; blessed are those who hunger for justice, for they will make sure that you enforce the rules fairly or at least see to it that you know when you’re being unjust; blessed are those who mourn, especially those who have to mourn too soon and too often and too much, because they will change your life and make you rethink your priorities.

In writing this out, I concluded that I have been looking at this move from the wrong angle. The question really isn’t “Who is easier?” but “What do I have to offer, and what gets in the way?” One stumbling block is having dumb ideas about what boys are like or girls are like,

“I can’t work with boys! I’m too girly! I am not good with power tools! I can’t talk about sports or hunting! It’s a disaster!”

Another obstacle is knowing that these boys need more than just what I have to offer, and thinking somehow I need to solve that. That’s a mistake I think a lot of us make: thinking our small part isn’t enough and the little that we can do doesn’t matter. Really, what is needed for a whole lot of little somethings to come together.

So, what does a middle-aged white woman have to offer a bunch of teenage Lakota guys? What does anyone have to offer another? When in doubt, go back to the basics: Show up. Pay attention. Give a hoot. Keep showing up. Make sure the same person keeps showing up each time, and not some façade constructed to make sure we all get along. Occasionally bake brownies.

I genuinely like these kids, so showing up and caring isn’t all that hard. (The boys think I’m a little weird, but they’re also pretty forgiving. ) As for all their other supporters near and far, families, role models, teachers, elders, mentors, and caring friends like you—just keep doing your part. Tune in, show up, take interest, give a hoot and keep us in your prayers. Now wasn’t that easy?

An update from Facilites

Native American boy smiles big for the camera. — Gavin can't wait to see the new homes!

The Facilities Department at St. Joseph’s Indian School is still busy working on their primary project of renovating the Stevens and Mathias Homes. The crew continues to make great progress and should be on schedule to complete the project on time.

The Stevens Home is getting closer to completion. We are currently installing carpet throughout the upstairs bedrooms, and the floor tile is finished on both levels. We consider the Stevens Home to be about 90% done.

As different areas are completed on the Stevens side of the home, the crew transfers over to the Mathias side. We are currently finished with texturing the walls and will be starting to paint on the Mathias side next week.