Roben Itchoak, (Inupiaq) teaches high school social studies in the Bering Straight, one of the remotest regions in the United States, and her journey to becoming a teacher was an eighteen-year path away from her home state of Alaska.

Roben earned her bachelor’s degree from Western Oregon University and worked at the Jensen Arctic Museum for ten years after graduation. When the museum collection she was working with transferred to the Museum of Natural and Cultural History at the University of Oregon, she enrolled in her first master’s program and earned a degree in Community and Regional Planning (17’). Her decision to earn a second master’s degree through Sapsik’ʷałá and UOTeach was influenced by Elders discussing the need for Native teachers to assist in community development. She also credits Elders and mentors for weaving traditional and cultural knowledge into her life; and this cultural knowledge she incorporates in her own teaching practice.

Roben’s journey to teaching began by teaching reading and writing at the middle school level. She incorporates family, Elders, and a sense of responsibility to community and Indigenous people as a whole. Her life motto of “working to help redevelop healthy and vibrant Indigenous communities” was informed by mentors that modeled the values of loving and educating children. Ms. Itchoak’s students credit her for the phrase, “you are my grandchildren’s Elders, I need you to be healthy!” And her explanation of why she provides the famed Sailor Boy Pilot Bread crackers and water to students in her classes is a lesson about teaching children accountability and generosity.

Roben is quick to discuss reading strategies and the role reading comprehension plays in ensuring students maintain the skills to read and write before graduating high school. She says Sapsik’ʷałá’s support was a “breath of fresh air” in her educational journey. Roben credits fellow cohort members and UO staff and faculty for building the skills needed to be an effective teacher. She also credits her fellow teachers and administrators in the Bering Strait School District for providing support and guidance along her teaching journey.

In addition to providing crackers for students and teaching reading and writing lessons, Roben also coached members of an Academic Decathlon team that recently qualified for a national event held in Texas. She explains that Texas is a long way from in the Bering Strait region, and teaching in remote areas provides an opportunity to develop relationships and connections with students through family and other arenas outside of the school building.

Roben’s path in her own educational journey is a powerful story of Indigenous Brilliance, she states that “teaching was the right path for me, because everyone maintains a responsibility to teach.”

It does not take long in a conversation with Sapsik’ʷałá alum Mich Sandoval, Diné, (MEd 17’ Elementary Education) to understand her impact on her Navajo community and students. Sandoval descends from a line of educators and is quick to recognize the benefits of a childhood growing up in a home where both parents were teachers and school administrators. She has fond memories of assisting her father during his summer school duties. Mich acknowledges her mother as being a prominent Indigenous educator in her life and recounts numerous stories of the influence her mother had on her as well as many other Navajo students as a school counselor. Mich is a quintessential example of an Indigenous teacher returning to their community to serve. 

Sandoval is a Kindergarten teacher at a school bordering the Navajo Nation that serves a Navajo student population. In addition to teaching, Mich is involved in a broad range of educational activities. She coaches track & field, cross country, is involved in afterschool activities like homework and gardening clubs and serves as an Education Justice Fellow for the National Education Association – New Mexico chapter (NEA-NM). Her fellowship work focuses on transportation issues students and families face while living in remote parts of the Navajo Nation.  

Mich led community efforts to revitalize the strong Navajo running tradition by organizing a cross country team for her school. She recounts, “When I first walked into our school, the trophy case was filled with running trophies from the past. I wanted to re-start a running program and it took off like a wildfire because the community went into action. They bulldozed tracks, picked-up trash, and sold burritos on race day as a fundraiser. We started the program with thirteen runners and last season we had forty-eight runners.”  One main cross country goal Mich has is building a memorial cross-country route in honor of Missing Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW).   

She is quick to give a first-hand account of how the high violence rates on American Indian reservations impacts teaching, classrooms, and schools. Mich is motivated through a social justice lens to improve transportation access for students and families living in remote parts of the Navajo Nation, centering LGBTQIA+ issues, and highlighting the effects of school violence on teachers. She credits her time at University of Oregon as being fundamental for developing her social justice perspectives and voice.  

Her time with Sapsik’ʷałá was important for her academic success because she felt supported by a community of people: “Sapsik’ʷałá was key to my success because it created connection… connection to Natives from other communities, connection to alumni who supported me… to Elders and their stories.” She says one valuable lesson she learned while at the University of Oregon was the power of Native voice and representation on campus. She credits this lesson as being another integral experience that informs her own voice.  

Mich defines Indigenous education through a community perspective. She always wanted to serve her Nation through teaching, “I always had a passion to teach on my reservation, my people, my community. I want to make a difference.”  Her connection to her family, community, and people inspires and exemplifies the power of Indigenous education: “On my journey, I can always go home, and arms are going to be open. I work to remember to embrace it, be gentle with it, respect it, and always remember to give my best and do my all.”  

University of Oregon and Sapsik’ʷałá (MS ’14 Special Education) alumnus Ron Worst (Yup’ik) has been serving in various roles in Indian Education for the past 20 years. Ron’s current position is with the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) as an Education Program Specialist with the Division of Performance & Accountability. His division serves Native students, teachers, and staff through improvement of special education services in 174 schools across 23 different states. Prior to the Education Program Specialist position, Ron was a high school special education teacher for the Cascade School District (Turner, Oregon) and Chemawa Indian School (Salem, Oregon).  He served in the BIE as an Educational Technician for a number of years before choosing to pursue a master’s degree and endorsement in special education through Sapsik’ʷałá.

His time at Chemawa as an Educational Technician motivated him to choose  UO’s nationally ranked Special Education program. Ron credits Sapsik’ʷałá with preparing him for his career. “The value of being a part of a community, cohort, and program that prepares teachers to serve Native students, families, and schools through integration of cultural values in education has been important in every position and school I’ve served.”  Ron’s time at Chemawa was fruitful for a number of reasons as he explained that the ability to integrate culture practices into learning and teaching math was a new concept for him. He says the students were the driving force for wanting to find different ways to frame math concepts that were relevant to students’ life; incorporating traditional teachings into school can be layered when teaching students from numerous Native communities.

Ron’s career motivation centers the success of Native special education students and teaching them that anything can be accomplished through family, community, friends, teachers, and school staff. One of the most impactful classes he taught was a 2^nd year Transitions course at Chemawa where he provided students opportunities to tell their stories. That simple act of “talking with students about what is meaningful to them,” and asking “what is their story?” was key to his practice as an Indigenous educator. “We can learn so much when students tell their stories, yet, just as impactful is watching students find their story.” As an Indigenous educator, he says working with Native students and families provides a foundational understanding for his work because there is a common history with boarding schools and shared history; building trust with students and families is assisted with this common history.

Although his current work is at a different level now, he enjoys when programs and schools serving Native students and families can thrive and become more successful, which he states, “if schools are providing better special education services, they are helping Native students succeed.”  Ron acknowledges that working in Indian Education is not easy, there is continued need for Native teachers at all levels and the value for Native educators cannot be overstated.