Caught between two worlds
Students learn to embrace Native American culture
Josselyn Berry, December 2009
Lynx Editor

Photo by Morgan Jacobs

Surrounded by Native American artifacts, Ryan Kamper and Niqi Padilla study in the library. Kamper and Padilla have learned how to merge their heritage into school life.

Niqi Padilla and Ryan Kamper travel between two worlds. One world is full of tradition, family and rituals. The other world is hectic, full of deadlines, meetings and assignments. The first world is the Navajo Indian reservation, while the other world is that of Phoenix.

Living in two worlds can be daunting and Padilla and Kamper faced many dilemmas when they first moved to the city. The Paradise Valley Community College students had to create new lives, make new friends, learn a new language and immerse themselves in a completely different culture.

Padilla still has her feet in both worlds, but the transition has become easier over the years. Born in Albuquerque, N. M., she lived on the Navajo Reservation until she was 6-years-old. Padilla now lives in Phoenix and is a high school junior at North Canyon High School, but attends community college through PVCC's Hoop of Learning program, which helps Native Americans complete high school and transition to college.

Kamper is also a member of the Navajo reservation and is Padilla’s cousin. He is a junior at North Canyon High School and has been attending PVCC since last January through the Hoop of Learning program. Kamper lived on Navajo land in Tohatchi, N. M. until he was 10 years old.

The Navajo reservation is located in Northern Arizona and extends into Utah and New Mexico and covers over 27,000 square miles of land. On the reservation, people live scattered around in trailers, homes and traditional Navajo homes called hogans, which are one-room roundhouses. The reservation is spread out and vast; full of small towns made up of government housing, trailers, homes, schools, stores, churches and other buildings. Children roam across the immense land while adults complete daily chores, such as taking care of livestock and making dinner. Padilla describes the reservation as plain, yet beautiful in its serenity.

Reaching for Goals

Padilla encountered numerous challenges once she moved off the reservation. She explains that in school on the reservation, reading and spelling were not well taught, and when she came to school in the city, it was difficult. Making friends was hard as well.

“You felt underprivileged from the other kids,” she says.
 

Padilla is committed to getting a higher education and getting a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Currently she’s looking into colleges and searching for scholarships and grants. She wants to use her education to help those on the reservation. After she completes her education, Padilla plans to move back to the reservation to assist with the numerous issues, which include alcoholism and students dropping out of school.

“There are a lot of issues out there (on the reservation) and I feel like I should get more in tune with that,” says Padilla.

Although Padilla was young when she left the reservation, she says she didn’t mind moving away, as long as she was with her family. However, now Padilla says she does miss the reservation, but appreciates being a part of both cultures.

“Now I have the best of both worlds: reservation life and city life,” she says.

Kamper faced his own difficulties once he moved into the city. Kamper says he spoke very poor English and had problems speaking to other children and learning the language. Kamper says he has overcome these challenges, though.

He is currently getting his prerequisites completed for college, but is not sure what his future holds.

“I’m determined to go far, but I don’t know where yet,” he says.

However, Kamper does know he wants to return to the reservation to help fix the education system, which he says was not great. Hoop of Learning has certainly helped Kamper with his educational goals. The program has allowed him to go to high school and college at the same time.

“It makes me feel like we (Native Americans) aren’t forgotten…It’s giving us the opportunity to go to college,” he says.

The Challenges

For the first couple months of living in the city, Kamper was very uncomfortable having people live so close, and until he was 13, he had nightmares about a stranger coming into his house. Kamper prefers all the open space of the reservation as opposed to city life. He explains that in the city you have little or no land, but on the reservation there are endless possibilities of what you can do.

Kamper says living in Phoenix has made it difficult incorporating his heritage into daily life, but one Native American cultural aspect, taking care of your family, is something he keeps up with every day. Kamper especially appreciates the stories his people tell during the winter; the Native American belief that everything is here for a reason and that everything has life.

Kamper’s grandmother, who passed away this past summer, was a vital connection to his heritage. He would listen to his mother and grandmother talk in Navajo and then ask his mother to translate for him. Kamper says he wants to learn his culture, but this is difficult.

“I get really mad thinking there’s so much tradition and people that live there (on the reservation) are turning their backs on it,” he says. “They have all those people who speak the language and know the tradition...and they take it for granted. They don’t pay attention to it.”

Padilla says her grandmother, Franricia, helps her connect to her heritage. She’ll tell stories about her days at boarding school, where she wasn’t allowed to speak her language. Padilla says that many of her friends and cousins help her stay connected with her heritage as well.

“I’ve gotten a lot fonder of my heritage,” Padilla says. “I want to learn more about it.”

A Heritage at Risk

The Native American Student Association is a student club that helps Native American students stay connected with their heritages while they attend PVCC. The 5-year-old club is committed to helping Native American students with their educational goals as well as promoting cultural awareness. Lolita Quiroz became the club’s adviser because she said she felt that the Native American students needed someone to talk to and someone they could identify with.

Quiroz says the club helps students keep in touch with their heritage because there are many “urban Indians,” who have been born and raised in an urban community, and there are several students who still live on the reservation and will commute during the week and go home on weekends and holidays to be with family.

Student Support           

The NASA club provides a network for students and connects with other NASA clubs. They share barbecues, hikes, charity walks and other social events.
“It’s kind of like a support unit,” Quiroz says.

Padilla has recently joined NASA and says she feels the other members understand her and her point of view. She also says she enjoys the way many older members will discuss Native American history, which she wants to know more about. Padilla says the club has definitely helped her maintain ties to her heritage.

“It’s a gathering of people that you’re familiar with and comfortable around,” she says.

Kamper is also a member of NASA and says that so far being in the club has been good. The club recently organized a display of Native American artifacts in the library, and Kamper participated.

He says, “I felt happy we were able to display our culture and show people we’re still here.”

The club holds many activities, especially during November, which is Native American Recognition month. Each year, NASA tries to put on three days of events; they’ll bring in speakers, traditional dancers and cook fry bread. However, this year the club was unable to host as many events because they were unable to obtain the Social Cultural grant due to the school’s budget cuts.

Fortunately, NASA was able to host two events. On Nov. 4, student Jesus Gaelick gave a presentation on Native American culture and played the flute while Laurinda Reynolds re-told traditional Cherokee stories. Along with the Veteran’s club, the club also sponsored a Navajo code talker, Joseph Kellwood, from World War II on Nov. 10.

Quiroz says that many Native American students who used to live on the reservation have unique issues and trouble assimilating. Quiroz also explains that in Native American culture, children don’t ask many questions as they are taught to be quiet and listen. Because of this, Native American students may have trouble asking questions or requesting help. Quiroz says that many students with connections to the reservation like to go back and participate in rituals and ceremonies. However, teachers don’t always understand this and may not excuse them from class.

But Quiroz says, “They need to go to them; it’s part of the culture…We don’t want to lose our culture… We want to keep it. We want to keep our language alive.”