It’s been a few months since the ink dried on the sheepskins awarded to several Oneidas, and as they celebrate their new beginnings -- in college or the workplace – others are embarking upon similar paths of academe that their predecessors so recently left behind.

College Bound High School Grads

The Sept. 30, 2008 Chronicle of Higher Education reported that:

“The number of American Indian and Alaska Native students enrolled in higher education has more than doubled in the past 30 years, according to a report on the educational progress of American Indians that was released today by the Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics.”

Since 1990, the year the Nation implemented its scholarship program, more than half of the Nation’s adults have availed themselves of the opportunity to seek advanced education.

The program offers Oneidas funds equal to the tuition at a public college. Those who prefer to attend private schools receive the equivalent of the public school tuition. A stipend toward living expenses is given to all students. Currently, 75 Oneidas are enrolled in college, including the following 2009 high school grads.

Bailey Findley (Turtle Clan), a freshman at Houghton College near Buffalo, graduated from Penn Yan Academy. The recent high school grad is pursuing a degree in education with an ultimate goal of teaching special education.

“Last summer (2008), I worked at a camp for developmentally disabled adults, and I liked it,” said Bailey. “I want to help them; I want to make a difference.”

Houghton was recommended to Bailey by her former high school teachers, who lauded the education program. And the college is only an hour and a half from home, adding to the appeal.

“I’m going to miss playing soccer and drama club and band, all the activities of high school,” said Bailey. “One thing I’ve learned is to cherish the time because it flies by.”

While Bailey has chosen an academic path in education, Katrina Bear (Wolf Clan) is steering her goals toward her dream job as a top-flight race car driver or a driver’s crew member.

Headed to the University of Northwestern Ohio, Katrina chose the school because it offers courses in mechanics, which she hopes will lead to working on top fuel dragsters.

“These dragsters are long and go over 300 miles an hour,” said Katrina, who graduated from Vernon-Verona-Sherrill. “You have to know your car; you have to know how to drive those cars. The college has a drag club I can join, and I’m bringing my own dragster to race.”

Her courses involve high-performance auto tech and business management, allowing her to earn an associate’s degree through the two-year program. Then her goal is to work in the field she has been competing in since she was 12 years old.

Throughout high school she raced. She also took classes in auto tech, which increased her knowledge about street cars, just one of her interests during high school.

“I’m going to miss playing sports, especially field hockey,” said Katrina. “We went to the state tournament during my senior year. We had a really good season.

“High school taught me to be more independent and made me a better person. It helped me grow up.”

From pursuits on the race track and education to another grad's plans to work in animation, Oneidas are exploring varied possibilities for the future. Alex Dickerman (Turtle Clan), who graduated from Stockbridge Valley High School, found his career nook while participating in the Nation’s Youth Work Learn Program at Four Directions Productions.

Enrolled at Utica College studying liberal arts, Alex hopes to transfer to Syracuse University in the future to focus on animation. His dream job would be to work back where he started, in animation at Four Directions Productions.

Alex taught himself animation and honed that skill, along with digital modeling, during his two years under the tutelage of the pros at Four Directions. He has his own equipment at home, but if he runs into a problem he can ask someone at Four Directions, he said.

“Those guys help me a lot and they teach me,” said Alex. “But most of the time I just try to figure things out on my own. I’d like to work there. I want to stay close to home; close to family.”

Bachelor’s Degrees

Alex’s journey to college is pretty straightforward and typical of today’s high school grads. Janice Fougnier (Wolf Clan), on the other hand, took a more circuitous road to college, with many side trips interrupting along the way. Despite the obstacles she faced, Janice did return to school, earning her bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University (SU) in organizational leadership and graduating magna cum laude.

“Attending college was something that eluded me when I got out of high school,” said Janice. “Financially I couldn’t do it. And back then they pushed girls to go into secretarial or home economics -- neither interested me. My degree from SU is completely different.”

Organizational leadership, said Janice, prepares the graduate to apply for consulting positions, aiding businesses that are foundering from any number of problems. Professionals in the field help to stabilize the company.

She started out working in a business setting and then married and had a family, and then had to go back to work. There was never time for college.

“It wasn’t until I retired that I decided to succeed in a goal I had my whole life,” said Janice, who has five daughters and 13 grandchildren. “It was an accomplishment. It was wonderful. I never felt there was an age barrier between younger and older students. I was always made to feel like I was one of the group.”

Her choice of majors came naturally, she admits. A skilled organizer and multi-tasker, Janice wanted to strengthen those talents and learn how to help organizations run smoother. And her people skills also helped. “I can get people on the same team,” said Janice, who is working part-time for SU’s Native American Studies Program. “I’m a people person; I can get along with others. I’m pretty laid back even in my personal and family life. I think that promotes a calming atmosphere.”

Beginning her academic career at Onondaga Community College in 1998, Janice attended school and worked full-time. Attaining high honors while enrolled in the associate’s program, her job became too demanding for her to continue on for a bachelor’s degree. In 2006, after she retired, the stars aligned and Janice entered SU as a full-time student.

The entire education experience provided Janice with a wider world view. “There’s a whole world I had no clue about, different people in parts of the world I had never heard of before. I learned how the human brain works. I discovered things I never would have thought of before. And all the different writers and how they think. It all gave me respect for education. You become so encapsulated in your own life you don’t realize that there are all these things going on in different parts of the world.”

Due to her high academic standing at SU, she was selected by the Golden Key Society to attend President Obama’s inauguration, an opportunity she said she will not soon forget. While in Washington, her group also had a conference with former Secretary of State Colin Powell and former Vice President Al Gore.

“Going back to school for me was so easy,” said Janice. “I never thought of it as difficult. I had wonderful friends who, along with my daughters, were supportive and were interested in what I was studying. It was a good experience. You touch people’s lives and they touch yours.”

While Janice, out of necessity, waited until retirement to return to school for a career shift, Amy Ross (Turtle Clan) was already working in the industry of her choice when she decided to pursue her degree. A pit manager at Turning Stone Resort and Casino, Amy earned her bachelor’s degree from Morrisville State College in resort and recreation services management.

Armed with her new degree and 16 years of experience at Turning Stone, Amy hopes her future position will be that of assistant shift manager. But she’s in no hurry. She earned her associate’s degree in 2000 and took her time earning her bachelor’s.

“There was no hurry; I went part-time and worked,” said Amy. “I like my job as a pit manager. It’s challenging and you meet interesting people. I have a lot of opportunity at Turning Stone.”

Meanwhile, Jason Rood (Turtle Clan) was seeking to switch his job outlook in a totally new direction. In 2005, after working at SāvOn for several years, he quit his job and enrolled full- time at Mohawk Valley Community College taking graphic arts. After two years, he transferred to Cazenovia College, earning a bachelor’s degree with a visual communication major.

And he’s not finished. Jason plans to attend Syracuse University, enrolling in a two-year master’s degree program in either advertisement or management. Once again, he plans to attend full time, but this time while working full time as well.

After graduation, he began working at Four Directions Productions and it’s where he would like to make his career. School and now work have been Jason’s focal point, but each take a step back to his fiancé, son, and step-daughter.

“It was tough while I was in school balancing everything,” said Jason. “What really helped was not working and also having a big extended family. My mother did a lot of babysitting. We all live near each other, so family helped out a lot. I was even able to keep up my racing with my brother Lonnie’s help. (See sidebar on Jason’s car racing.)

“Because the Nation paid for my education, I hope to remain working for the Nation to give back. It’s really because of them I could go to school.”

Associate’s Degrees

Rachel Curtis (Wolf Clan) also resounded with gratitude toward the Nation. A mom to three daughters under the age of 5 – Diane, Stephanie and Elisabeth Morris – Rachel graduated from Herkimer County Community College with an associate’s degree in general studies, and she credits the Nation for making the opportunity possible.

“I want to work with the Nation Members because the Nation has done the best thing for me and my kids by allowing me to go to school, and now I want to apply the knowledge I’ve acquired and give back,” said Rachel, who is enrolled at Utica School of Commerce.

But school is only one aspect of the help Rachel said the Nation has offered. From living in affordable housing at the Village of the White Pines to health insurance for her family and a part-time job at SāvOn, the Nation has eased her path, helping her to build a better life.

When she graduates with her bachelor’s degree, she is hoping to use her business acumen at the Nation.

“I just want to give back to the Nation,” said Rachel. “They’ve given me so much.”

Nearly 2,000 miles west of Rachel’s HCCC alma mater is the Institute of American Indian Arts (AIAI) in Santa Fe, N.M., where Joy Chrisjohn (Turtle Clan) earned her associate’s degree in museum studies and is continuing on at the school, working toward a bachelor’s degree in her chosen field.

Joy’s interest in art and museums, as well as repatriations, is what led her into the museum studies program. She hopes to be able to channel that interest further by attending a graduate program after earning her four-year degree. Currently, AIAI doesn’t offer a master’s in museum studies, but Joy is determined not to let that detail stand in her way.

“I could take classes at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque to start a graduate degree and then transfer wherever I was accepted,” said Joy. “But the family would stay in New Mexico, and I would just go away for school and then come back.”

Along with her school work, Joy has also been busy with internships in museums around Santa Fe. She said she enjoys the hands-on experience, implementing what she learned in the classroom.

As a non-traditional student – a wife, mother and grandmother – Joy made the dean’s list every semester but one, when she was on the president’s list.

“The class work is not the battle for me; it’s my health,” said Joy. “Last semester, I had four surgeries. Every semester, I’ve ended up in surgery. I have a scooter because I haven’t been able to walk. It’s a battle, but it makes me more determined to try harder. It lets younger students know if you work for something, you can achieve it. School has been very beneficial to me.”

Long term, Joy’s ideal position would be to act as a liaison between students and artists, a field that is just evolving. And Santa Fe is rife with new artists who are breaking the mold of what is currently considered art, she said.

“Every artist has his own journey,” said Joy. “Right now, there are few jobs in the field. But once you get involved in the museum studies program, you start to see beyond the classroom. That’s what interests me.”