Kenny Derby, Sonny Red Owl, Kameron Runnels and Santee Elder Roger Trudell checked out Southeastern Technical College last week during a Winona visit. Not pictured is Elvis Laplant. The four young men are working toward attending college in Winona, with the help and collaboration of the Diversity Foundation. |
The years that follow will change their lives. They will return home with experiences and connections that many of their elders never had the opportunity to make.
They will be leaders. They are leaders.
The four young men from the Santee Nation in South Dakota visited Winona last week to tour Winona State University, St. Mary's University, Southeastern Technical College and Cotter High School.
They are expected to begin their post-secondary educations here in Winona, possibly beginning during spring semester. And while this might be the natural course of action for some young adults, these young men are blazing a path that wasn't ready-made.
All four boys - Elvis Laplant, Sonny Red Owl, Kenny Derby and Kameron Runnels - will make the college journey from their homes in the Santee Nation in South Dakota, a journey marking a significant hope for their families and people.
The education these young men have before them will set them apart, and bring a new hope to the people of the Santee Nation, whose unemployment rates hover in the 70 percent range.
The connection between the Dakota people in Minnesota and South Dakota dates back over 150 years, when Winona's ancestors drove the Dakota west to a land with no economy, no industry, no resources. Today, an initiative hopes to make the years-old connection positive and hopeful, with the Diversity Foundation at the helm of a variety of efforts at fund-raising and building meaningful and inclusive relationships.
Lyle Rustad, Diversity Foundation executive director, along with Roger Trudell, a Santee Elder; and Todd Runnels, a Santee teacher and coach, accompanied the young men on their visit to Winona schools. This, they said, was the first time that the group has worked together to bring young Dakota youths to college. And it won't be the last.
They have more to work out than just registering for classes. Things like room and board, books and rides back and forth from the college and home have to be sorted out. But the young men have a solid team behind them as they begin their journey into college, and Rustad said that everyone is pulling resources together.
"These are the leaders," said Rustad, motioning toward the four young men during their tour of Southeastern Tech. "[Trudell] believes in these kids," he continued. "That's why they're here."
The Diversity Foundation has worked with a variety of endeavors, this being the first time at helping to rally resources for young students. Most recently, the foundation finished up a toy and winter coat drive at Midtown Foods, and there may be another drive in the works later this winter. Over the summer, a drive aimed at squelching the heat in the Crow River Reservation brought donations of fans and air conditioners, along with other household items, to folks who might not have them otherwise.
"Well, now we want to try to do something more," said Rustad of the college visit. He said that the group is hoping that, through efforts like this, the high unemployment rate on the Santee Reservation might be affected.
To learn more about the Diversity Foundation, or ways to become involved, visit www.diversityfoundation.org.
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