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As the Red Power movement swept crossed the United States successful the 1960s and ’70s, Native American students astatine Fresno State besides took steps to go much disposable and empowered, creating the Tewaquachi American Indian Club successful 1969 (now named NEUM Native American Student Association).
The nine helped marque Fresno a focal constituent successful the Central Valley for Native Americans arsenic it sponsored the archetypal American Indian Heritage Week and Fresno State Pow Wow successful 1983.
Since then, Fresno State’s Native American students, unit and module person continued to enactment to uplift and observe the Native American assemblage connected field and crossed the Valley, including done hosting the yearly Native American Youth Conference.
Open to students successful grades 6 done 12, the Native American Youth Conference provides an accidental to research pathways toward higher education. Hosted connected Nov. 2, this year’s league besides emphasized the value of assemblage and belonging.
Amber Esquivel said, “Belonging became my imaginativeness [for] the time due to the fact that crossed the Central Valley determination are Native students who, for aggregate reasons, whitethorn beryllium experiencing othering which volition past go a domino effect, [leaving] america astatine the assemblage wondering wherefore Native students aren’t pursuing higher education. My extremity became to absorption connected belonging and the messaging of: ‘I americium worthy, you are worthy and we are worthy.’”
Esquivel serves arsenic an outreach counsellor for the university’s Native American Initiative and a co-adviser for NEUM Native American Student Association. She is simply a two-time Fresno State alumna.
“Growing up, [I] didn’t person these events oregon opportunities successful school, and I retrieve walking my precocious schoolhouse field feeling similar I was the lone Native pupil there,” Esquivel said. “I bask giving backmost to aboriginal generations by guiding them done the motions of higher education. My grandma was a large advocator for education, and I’m continuing her bequest of moving successful acquisition and helping each Native students execute their goals.”
With Native students continuing to marque up little than 1% of Fresno State’s pupil population, Esquivel’s ngo is to make a consciousness of belonging for Native students. Studies amusement the stronger a student’s consciousness of belonging astatine the university, the amended the accidental helium oregon she volition enactment successful schoolhouse and yet gain a degree.
Throughout the day, the Native American Youth Conference provided students the accidental to link with peers from different schools and tribes — moving successful tiny groups to ideate a Native pupil nine of their ain creation, implicit a scavenger hunt and partake successful taste games and activities.
The league besides hosted a assets just and a store wherever parents and household members could get much accusation astir fiscal aid, A-G requirements and however to enactment their students’ pursuit of higher education.
To extremity the conference, Esquivel facilitated a league of the Belmont Process. Attendees were asked to reply aloud the questions: What did you see? What did you hear? And what did you feel? Answering these questions was a mode to collectively process the day’s activities.
As attendees spoke of a consciousness of solidarity, spot and spiritual medicine, the country filled with hums of agreement. And determination was a palpable displacement successful the country arsenic 1 pupil answered the question, “What did you feel,” by saying, “A portion of maine is meant to be.”
To larn much astir Fresno State’s Native American Initiative and resources for Native students, sojourn https://studentaffairs.fresnostate.edu/outreach/nai/index.html.
