By Tesia Zientek, Director of CPN Department of Education
Last fall, the Citizen Potawatomi Nation Department of Education hosted its first annual Wzhitawen (Potawatomi for S/He Prepares) Native American College & Career Fair. With more than 30 universities, technical schools and tribal education departments attending from all over the United States, dozens of students and families received a wealth of information about preparing for the next step of their education journeys.
This year, we will build on that success with our second event from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 13 at FireLake Arena near Shawnee, Oklahoma. We have invited even more colleges and have moved the event to a weekday so that local schools can bus in their students. To highlight the distinct diversity of Native American students, we look forward to incorporating cultural activities such as a visit from the CPN Eagle Aviary’s glove-trained golden eagle, Myanabe.
Ultimately, we hope that this event, which is unique in our area, connects students to educational opportunities they did not know existed. Additionally, we hope schools learn what bringing a Native American student to their campus can do to enrich the diversity of their institution.
As always, our education department staff can field inquiries at college@potawatomi.org.
