Wiconi Waste Unspepi Kte (Learning a Good Life)

Develop the skills and capacity of Oglala Lakota tribal members from age 18 to 26 to obtain and retain employment in jobs available on and off the Reservation, and develop and pursue life plans that include holistic goals for education, family, health, finance, housing, etc.

This goal addresses the current condition of lack of education, unemployment, substance abuse, poverty, etc. and the long term community goal to create meaningful economic and job opportunities that reignite cultural identity through homegrown solutions to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation needs. The project goal logically aligns to the outcomes of employment, further education and holistic life plans dealing with Reservation realities.

The objectives naturally flow from the above goals as we address basic work skills and employability as well as the education and life skills needed to succeed.

The project goal, objectives and outcomes can be tracked and measured through employment, further education and progress after they complete the 10 month program.

Our project is focused on improving the job employability of our Tribal youth with the completion of our Workforce Development Program. Our target for this objective has two focus areas; on-the-job training and continuing education and skills development. During each 10-month project period, our on-the-job training provides 1,246 hours of training in renewable energy, agriculture, and construction for each participant. Additionally, we focus on providing 66 hours of continuing education and skills development which includes education milestones such as high school diploma, GED, or entering a post-secondary education program. Skills development include industry recognized certifications such as OSHA 10,  and First-Aid/CPR, Job search techniques, Cover Letter & Resume, Interview Prep,  Physical Appearance, and National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC) test prep.

Through completion of this objective, each participant receives skills, tools, and knowledge to increase their job literacy for employment. Each element of the objective builds job literacy as well as helping the participant understand the importance of education needed to qualify for jobs. The addition of the NCRC to our program further enhances our capabilities to show our participants what their potential for management positions and beyond are. With the NCRC participants can make connections to the importance of continuing education beyond basic high school and GED education requirements.  

The target population are men and women aged 18 to 26 living on the Pine Ridge Reservation especially the communities of Porcupine, Kyle, Wounded Knee and Manderson. The focus is on those needing entry level work skills and further education. 

Our young natives are disproportionately underserved in many ways; living in rural areas where is it socioeconomically disadvantaged; people with limited English proficiency; geographically isolated or educationally disenfranchised. 

Many young adults are struggling to adapt to a 21st century job market, in which computer skills and technological literacy are critical success factors. Where we fall short and what this application seeks to address is expanding nontechnical proficiency in the field of construction to prepare our workforce for the evolving job market.

The training will help underemployed young Lakota’s gain valuable skills to help them find jobs and also enhance their qualifications and allow them to consider alternative career paths.

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation youth have modern day battles to fight with poverty, substance abuse, suicide, and loss of language and culture. Our youth need to be modern day warriors,  and education and work for our families and Tribe is the goal of modern day warriors. There are many entry level jobs on the Reservation that provide a start to long term employment such as construction. The schools emphasize college as the only path and Oglala Lakota College provides that opportunity but many of our youth are dropping out of high school or college, and/or do not meet the academic base needed to succeed. They lose hope looking at all the obstacles mentioned in the current condition. 

We propose to assist those youth to get basic work and life skills in the classroom and on the job, and develop plans based on their own goals and reservation realities. Once they have seen what work is like they can pursue further education.

Every member of the team was born and/or raised on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Most attended school from Kindergarten through 12th grade on the reservation as well. While some of the team members went to college, others attended trade school or joined the military. It is these experiences that allows us to share with the students, and encourage them to experience for themselves.

Our team lead and members have all served in different capacities that served the people of the Pine Ridge Reservation. Some were carpenters with our tribal housing authority, an Attorney General, Child Protection Services investigator, Prosecutor, sports coach, just to name a few. With these jobs they were exposed to many different families and environments on the Pine Ridge Reservation and have witnessed family dynamics, home settings, and social disparities. 

Majority of our young adults that enter the program have either dropped out of high school, never went to high school, or have graduated high school. This  particular age group we see as "at-risk", and may turn to wanton behaviors to support themselves or their families.  Many young adults are made to fend for themselves upon turning 18 yrs of age, a belief that may have been adopted or influenced by the cultural, economic, or political systems of Europe and North America. Most come from families that are socially and economically disadvantaged and have no other means to support themselves. 

To engage the students as they enter the program, they are given an orientation to the organization, meet organization staff, learn the history of Thunder Valley CDC, as well as participate in morning/afternoon meetings which we call "Morning /Closing Circle" where we smudge off with sage, and an elder of the organization offers a prayer before we start/end our day at work. Everyone in attendance gives a brief statement on what they are grateful for on that particular day. 

To understand their needs, they are given an intake form as they start the program where they explain their current emotional feeling, short term and long term goals, and personal financial understanding. Halfway through the program we visit their intake forms to see what has changed, whether it be mentally, physically, or both. 

We propose to do this through homegrown solutions that Thunder Valley has begun over the past 12 years. We have made strides through our Workforce Development Through Sustainable Construction program but we want to improve and expand the program into other areas of work as well as sustain the model through partnerships and funding.

The program works, but the obstacle that seems to interrupt operations is grant writing. A partnership with an organization or person(s) that can assist with this skill is paramount. Competition for grants is often cumbersome and often discouraging, but with fresh eyes and a different perspective it may prove to be beneficial. 

Tate Win Means was born and raised on the Pine Ridge Reservation where she attended elementary and high school at Little Wound School. While growing up she also participated in extracurricular activities that included our Lakota culture and traditions that include native american dancing at pow-wows, traditional ceremonies, and following the Lakota spiritual calendar. She also served as the Oglala Sioux Tribe's attorney general from 2013-2016. Her exposure to the different personalities and families of the reservation have allowed her to possess the courage and candor to make legal decisions for the tribal courts.  

She has children that also participate in our Lakota Lifeways and language speaking. 

Many times as a young adult, we were told to go to the military or that not having a college degree would be detrimental to our careers, but unemployment rates among college graduates are at an all-time high, therefore causing many high school students to reevaluate the meaning of a college degree. Moreover, there are students who have not finished high school, and don’t have another avenue of approach to help them decide what to do, creating an ideation of the need to survive. It’s in this “survivor mode” where many young adults find themselves struggling with finding a job and a way to survive without an education; WFD helps the student get into GED classes with Oglala Lakota College at the Pahin Sinte college center if they don’t have a high school diploma. GED classes are tailored to their placement tests and helps them study for the GED. The GED is paid for by a grant from Dollar General. Additionally, college cannot be afforded for some who don’t know how to pay for college, apply to college, or decide on a major. WFD has collaborated with the South Dakota Department of Labor to conduct National Career Readiness Certificate testing to assist these students in deciding what skills they possess for workplace success. The NCRC tests the students reading and math skills, supplements a high school diploma, and lets a future employer know what kind of employee they will be hiring. With this information, Thunder Valley capitalized on these facts and targeted the age group 18-26 to help them develop a construction skill – an investment that will pay for itself in a short period of time. There is a lack of skilled laborers like carpenters, plumbers and mechanics; with this shortage of skilled workers there is an unforeseen problem, without tradesmen there will be no one to fix a door, clogged pipes, or the brakes on your car. Additionally, 50% of skilled laborers are over the age of 45. Yet, society views going to college as a status symbol and accord those who graduated college undue respect, while others look down on tradesmen and skilled workers simply because they don’t need a college degree in their line of work. Are we saying we should tell the students to not go to college? No, a college degree is invaluable but our views on higher education should not be limited to traditional academics, but we should encourage a trade path such as construction. 

Develop the skills and capacity of Oglala Lakota tribal members from age 18 to 26 to obtain and retain employment in jobs available on the Reservation and to develop and pursue life plans that include holistic goals for education, family, health, finance, housing, etc.

This goal addresses the current condition of lack of education, unemployment, substance abuse, poverty, etc. and the long term community goal “to create meaningful economic and job opportunities that reignite cultural identity through homegrown solutions to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation needs. The Project Goal logically aligns to the outcomes of employment, further education and holistic life plans dealing with Reservation realities.

TVCDC has built the capacity to collect and report high-quality data through a comprehensive Data Management System, TVCDC’s Advancement Director overseeing the collection and management of data. TVCDC has conducted a number of large-scale data collection projects, including a year-long reservation-wide Community Needs assessment, the results of which was adopted by the Oglala Sioux Tribe as their official plan for sustainable development and a federal Promise Zone award designation. TVCDC has successfully collected and reported data for a number of large-federal grants, including a HUD sustainable communities grant and USDA and ANA awards.

We will store and track performance targets through an online data management system (Salesforce) and maintain long-term data collection for participants. We measure programmatic success as creating systemic change in the lives of youth and families, therefore project performance will be evaluated on the long-term outcomes related to the pieces of the Individual Success Plans. 

The Workforce Development Director will oversee initial data collection and input. The Deputy Director, Workforce Development Education Director will take this data and organize it into mid-year and annual reports. Data will be analyzed by the Deputy Director,  and the staff during the year and in depth November and December after a cohort has completed. All indicators will be monitored through measurements mentioned in other areas of the proposal and will be used by WWUK staff in real-time to work with the participants and modify project implementation. All forms, materials, curricula, etc. will be logged into a Project Database. 

The Deputy Director and Workforce Development Director will have at least an annual meeting with our collaborators at Oglala Lakota College, the Oglala Sioux (Lakota) Housing, Native Connections and a representative group of employers to review data, results and progress.

People are more engaged in their work when they feel a deeper connection to the organization and believe what they’re doing matters. In workforce development, the connection begins with healing and liberation (Cultural, psychological and economic freedom). Introducing the participants to the history of Thunder Valley, strategic plans, and that they, the participants, are important to the mission and vision of Thunder Valley will set the pace for everyday work plans, expected behaviors, and allows the participant to feel included.

Second, we will work on the individual. Besides being equipped with a construction skill, we want to prepare the young adult to enter the workforce also equipped with soft skills such as effective communication, self-advocacy, and a favorable attitude that is indicative of the Lakota values that will be learned while a student at Thunder Valley’s Workforce Development program. Healing is at the forefront of the young adult’s journey here at Thunder Valley. “Healing from colonialism that binds our people to trauma” (Tate Win Means, 2021, Robert Wood Johnson short film). Healing from colonial trauma may also include working on mental health disparities associated with genetics, health, policies, and practices. 

Here at Thunder Valley CDC we use various apps to include social media platforms that assist in recruiting, current events, and showcases projects that our students are working on or completed. Drones are also used to observe terrain when searching for foliage that can be used for our traditional ceremonies such as wood, and to alert the students of wild life in the area. An Apple iPad is used by the construction trainer to track the students progress on a daily basis and uploaded in real time to Sales Force.

Create meaningful economic and job opportunities that reignite Lakota cultural identity.

Thunder Valley CDC envisions a liberated Lakota nation through our language, lifeways, and spirituality. TVCDC’s mission statement is: “Empowering Lakota youth and families to improve the health, culture, and environment of our communities through the healing and strengthening of cultural identity.” All our work is place-based and comprehensive, centered on applying indigenous innovation in a way that honors our cultural heritage and is adapted for the needs and vision of our local community. Our organization was inspired and incubated by a group of youth and young families that were reconnecting to cultural spirituality and identity through Lakota ceremonies. It was our involvement in those ceremonies that inspired us to do more for our communities and for our people.

Fee-for-service. Although it is tailored for healthcare practices, the same can be said for our program. Our program receives its training by reaching out to private homeowners who need assistance with repairs to their homes. This is accomplished by the construction trainer assessing what needs to be done and compiling a list of materials needed for the project, and also will determine if the project is fit for a beginner level of construction. The homeowner enjoys the benefit of getting their repairs done for little to no cost but for the student it is a learning opportunity. We kindly ask the homeowner for a donation for the services rendered, and the proceeds help to replace or repair tools that incurred damage during the project.

Federal Grants, state grants, fee-for-services, and donations.

Through word of mouth as to how my program is efficient and successful, individuals have share their experience with others in the community and outlying agencies, therefore creating a need for the construction trainer to help them with their repairs, whether it be an office building or home. We've also helped our Tribal Housing Authority execute a grant that they needed help with.