Integrity , culture and community
Story by Melanie WILDERMAN ~ Photos by Ted SATTERFIELD Norman ’ s Indian Education program serves Native students , families and beyond
Oklahoma is currently home to more Native Americans per capita than any other U . S . state except Alaska . Thirty-nine tribes call this windy state home , with five tribes being indigenous : the Osage , Caddo , Kiowa , Comanche and Wichita . Specific to Norman , the city is home to around 5,600 Native people , according to 2019 data , and one organization plays an integral role in serving and educating Native American students and their families .
With a staff of just 14 , about half of those being tutors , the Norman Public Schools Indian Education program serves more than 2,000 students in K-12 , with specialized programs aimed at different age groups . Additionally , the program provides resources for those students ’ families , as well as training and resources for the district ’ s teachers .
While the NPS Indian Education mission statement says it “ provides paths that foster character , cultural awareness , and academic excellence in our students , empowering them to reach their full potential to positively impact the world ,” the program reaches beyond its Native American students and their families into the Norman community in general .
LucyAnn Harjo , the Indian Education coordinator for NPS and member of the Navajo Nation , has managed the program since 2005 and leads her staff members , many serving numerous roles within one position . Since Harjo has been coordinator , the program has grown from around 660 students to its current number of around 2,100 . Harjo explained part of that growth is because Indian Education is more inclusive than it used to be . For example , for some services students used to have to qualify by being on the free and reduced lunch program or having low grades ; however , those restrictions are no longer in place , so more students can be served . While agreeing this is part of the reason for the growth , other members of the staff also credit Harjo for the increase and variety of resources and events and how far reaching these are .
“ She [ Harjo ] is going to do whatever it takes to make it happen , because it ’ s that important to her to serve our kids and serve them well ,” said Wendi Schovanec , the program ’ s Indian Education specialist whose position , she explained ,
“ helps fill a gap between the teachers in the district and the indigenous knowledge they needed to pass on to the students .”
It ’ s All About the Partnerships The Indian Education program also teams up with numerous partners to serve its students and their families and grow their reach throughout the Norman community . Harjo explained they often work with many of the tribal nations , other tribal education or cultural programs , and a variety of grant-funded programs .
“ That connection between our program and the tribal nations is critical ,” Harjo said , explaining that 78 tribal nations are represented among the students in the NPS Indian Education program . “ A lot of our kids are from tribal nations outside of Oklahoma , so we are the hub of services and resources , of help , education , cultural activities .
Schovanec , about a year into her new role as a liaison between the NPS teachers and the tribal resources they may need , said teaching indigenous lessons can be stressful for non Native teachers if they do not have the right information and support . She explained that some teachers may want to lead lessons on Native culture or history , but they don ’ t want to do or say anything “ wrong ,” which can often mean , they just don ’ t do the lesson , and this is the exact reason her position was created .
“ We recognized the importance of being able to give that [ cultural ] knowledge to the teachers , so my position is really about creating curriculum – reaching out to the tribes and creating lessons about Native Americans within the state ’ s educational standards ,” Schovanec said .
Two of the many grant-funded partnerships include the Native Roots program – a grant dedicated to the prevention of drug and alcohol abuse that has been working with Harjo ’ s team to host cultural events for students and the community – and the Kiowa Language & Culture Revitalization Program . The latter program includes a goal to train Kiowa speakers to be teachers in public school systems so that all students in the district have the opportunity to learn the Kiowa language . NPS Indian Education worked
22 NormanMagazine . com | MAY / JUNE 2022