Lakota Well-Being Project

11/28/2025

11/28/2025

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11/28/2025

November is Native American Heritage Month! In celebration, we’d like to introduce you to a few Native Americans who have made some enormous contributions to our country:

Fred Begay was born on the Ute Mountain Indian Reservation in Colorado in 1932. Both his parents were Navajo healers and taught him Navajo medicine. Fred Begay spoke both Navajo and Ute and didn't learn English until he was 10. He attended a Bureau of Indian Affairs school in Ignacio, Colorado. Curious about the natural world, Fred Begay asked a lot of questions like how rainbows were made, earning him the name "Clever Fox". You would think this high desire to learn would gain appreciation from his teachers, but it didn't. He was instead trained to be a farmer and he never graduated high school. After serving in the Korean War, Fred Begay, still with a deep desire to learn, went to the University of New Mexico and earned a bachelor's degree in math and science (while at the same time taking remedial classes to catch up on his high school diploma). He later received a masters degree in physics and a doctorate in nuclear physics, becoming the first Native American to earn a degree in this subject. He became part of the Los Alamos Nuclear Physics team in 1971 and worked on thermonuclear plasmas as a possible alternative source of energy. He also studied the origin of high energy gamma rays and solar neutrons. Fred Begay always believed his Native upbringing helped him with his thinking. Fred Begay is also the head of the Seaborg Hall of Science, spending a significant amount of time talking to youth in the Navajo community, inspiring them to pursue careers in physics and technology. In 1994 the National Science Foundation presented him with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

11/27/2025

“This dress is something that would probably fit my daughter, who is approximately three years old, perfectly. The amount of beadwork on this item indicates it took many months to create. I can't imagine that the little girl for whom this dress was made wore it for very long since children grow so quickly. It was probably made for one daughter, and then passed down through the family; passing down beaded items is a practice in my household. In a way, each dress carries knowledge that is then transferred from one generation to the next.”
-Jessa Rae Growing Thunder (Dakota/Nakoda)

Three contemporary Plains Indian artists—John Pepion (Blackfeet), Brocade Stops Black Eagle (Crow), and Jessa Rae Growing Thunder (Dakota/Nakoda)―reflect upon their relationships with works created by their Ancestors. The three Native culture bearers have each curated a section of the exhibition, framing works that originated within their respective communities behind one of the three concepts at the heart of the exhibition. Through this unique combination of cultural objects and stories, Creative Continuities aims to educate visitors about the diversity of Native American culture, history, and tradition that crosses tribal boundaries, past and present. Now open through June 2027.

Čheškásansan kšúpi (Dress). Lakota artist. Lakota (Sioux). Circa 1880s. Hide, metal, and glass beads. Gift of Lora and Robert U. Sandroni. Autry Museum; 2021.34.1

11/27/2025

11/26/2025

Submit Below ⬇️
https://collegefund.org/students/pendleton-contest/

11/22/2025

Activist and scholar Debbie Reese explains how censorship harms our diverse democracy and emphasizes the importance of representation for Native American young people.

“Our children are Native every day. But in far too many places, books by Native writers are only brought into the classroom in November [during Native American Heritage month]. We are who we are, all year long. Use the books, all year round. Bring those possible selves into the classroom as a matter of course so that Native children’s identities are affirmed, every day.”

Revisit this Q&A article: https://lfj.pub/debbie-reese

11/20/2025

🗣️Mitakuyepi, anagoptan po! We are calling all Youth! Our 1st Oceti Sakowin Youth Conference: Art, Wellness, & Culture is this weekend! We have Lakota Instructors from the seven bands of Tituwan Oyate Kin coming to share their knowledge and expertise with the youth!

It is open to ALL teens from across Oceti Sakowin Homelands and we hope that you can come! Participants scan the QR code or click this link https://forms.gle/tJJSkjFcFUbruAd96 to register for the conference and sign up for the workshops that will be happening Saturday & Sunday!

Friday night will be a welcoming reception, with special guests Miss He Sapa Win Precious Cook & Wakinyan Maza Singers, followed by dinner & performances by Talon "Bazille" Ducheneaux and Breanna "Didds" Eaglefeather.

Share the flyer far & wide and we hope to see you this weekend!

11/19/2025

We join our community in honoring Native American Heritage Month this November. We want to especially celebrate our Two Spirit kin and the leadership Indigenous nations have shown in valuing those that embody both masculine and feminine spirits as sacred and valued members of community, transcending Western ideas of gender and sexuality.

11/19/2025

✨🪶Support SBC Students participating in AIHEC 2026!🪶✨

Get your $30 shirt today to help fund students attending the AIHEC Student Conference! All proceeds go directly to supporting their journey!

📍 Stop by the Sitting Bull College Student Services/Library building
💵 Cash only please

Thank you for supporting our students!