The visit was part of President Barack Obama’s Generation Indigenous initiative created to help Native American youth succeed.
ANADARKO, Okla. – The humidity oozes into a girls’ dorm room at Riverside Indian School as the early afternoon sun bursts through the windows and cascades off the bare white walls and standard black bunk beds. The loft-sized room is home to 14 elementary students during the school year.
On May 27, the room was one of many locations around the Anadarko campus where visitors from the nation’s capital learned about boarding school life. U.S. Department of Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn, Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) Director Dr. Charles “Monty” Roessel, U.S. Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), and U.S. Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) all took a tour of the Riverside campus.
The visit was part of President Barack Obama’s Generation Indigenous (“Gen I”) initiative created to help Native American youth succeed. Riverside Superintendent Tony Dearman led the group tour with staff members helping along the way.
Dorm manager Victoria Eaglenest led the visitors upstairs to one of the dorm sleeping areas and added to the sunshine already peering through the windows. Her heartfelt testimony provided a different kind of warmth by showing the visitors how much the Riverside staff cares about the students. The dorms for elementary students are in the older buildings on campus, where window units usually cool the air and red sprinkler pipes protrude from the ceiling close to the top bunks and near the light fixtures.
Dearman expressed concern about the lack of funding to help build elementary facilities that mirror those of the high school students. The new high school, built last year, includes large tornado safe rooms, an exercise room with weight lifting equipment, a new library, and a computer lab. There are also new high school dorms and a cafeteria. The old buildings, vacated after the new ones were built, sit waiting to be demolished while demolition work contracts await approval.
Amber Wilson, elementary-middle school principal (fourth-eighth grade), led the way through a cluster of new and old portable buildings used for elementary classrooms, a computer room and a laundry/supply room.
Secretary Jewell asked about student retention rates and the low pass rate for state testing. This opened discussions about the emotional well-being of some students and how the Riverside staff often has to supply more than classroom lessons to students in order for them to succeed.
Wilson spoke about some students who become homesick or have a need for basic clothing, such as coats and shoes.
“Hats are off to our staff,” Dearman said about their dedication to students.
He shared stories of students who have substance abuse problems, medical issues, make poor decisions, do not hear from their families, or just need the stable environment provided at school.
“There’s an incline in incident reports when it’s time to go home,” he said.
According to the White House 2014 Native Youth Report, “The American Indian/Alaskan Native high school graduation rate is 67 percent, the lowest of any racial/ethnic demographic group across all schools. And the most recent Department of Education data indicate that the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) schools fare even worse, with a graduation rate of 53 percent, compared to a national average of 80 percent.”
Despite the hurdles, Dearman and his staff continue to advocate for their students’ needs and focus on the progress they’re making academically and personally. Once the tour was over, the guests shuffled through the lunch line with students and later members from the Class of 2015 shared their thoughts during a discussion held in the gym. A constant remark from students was their appreciation for Riverside’s family environment.
Jewell congratulated the seniors and said being at Riverside is an opportunity for everyone to share cultures. She recognized the financial needs of the school as well as the work the staff does.
Riverside is funded by the Bureau of Indian Education, and out of the BIE’s four off-reservation boarding schools, Riverside is the largest, oldest, and the only one with an elementary component. There are approximately 500 students, with many of them attending from out of state.
The day ended with a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs oversight field hearing on “Advancing economic success in Indian Country” at the Anadarko High School auditorium. Lankford is a member of the committee and chaired the meeting.
“It’s great to hear directly from Native Americans in Oklahoma about their path to entrepreneurial success,” Lankford said. “There are still challenges ahead, but today’s hearing served as a substantive forum to examine what's working and where we can foster a nurturing environment to achieve successful private sector development in Indian country. As we move forward, the testimony we heard from today’s hearing will help us work together with tribal governments and communities to foster economic growth for years to come.”
