Alberta is a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe from the Cheyenne River reservation in Eagle Butte, South Dakota, and an AIEF Scholarship recipient for three years running. She's graduating this spring and took time out of her busy schedule to tell us about her college experience as a Native American student and how the AIEF Scholarship has had an impact on her life. Don't miss this exclusive interview with Alberta! Watch her tell the first part of her story below and watch your inbox for part 2!

Part 1

Alberta's original essay:

My name is Alberta and I am an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. I was born and raised on the Cheyenne River Reservation in Eagle Butte, South Dakota, where I lived until it was time to leave for college.

A photo of Alberta, smiling

I lived in a single-parent household — my mom has been divorced for about 4 years. My home consisted of my mom, my little brother and sister, and myself. I am the oldest of all the children, which has left me with a lot of responsibility. I have felt the pressure that single mothers feel by taking care of their children alone — my mother takes care of us on her own, and we also care for my grandparents.

My community has been through a lot, including recently, being tremendously affected by drugs. Although my community is seen as small, it is strong, and I feel like it has reflected that strength on me.

The biggest circumstance for me to overcome personally was pushing myself to maintain my personal expectations when it came to my schoolwork. There were many times when I could’ve just stopped working as hard as I do and just been an average student or I could simply have just dropped out of high school. During this time, many different things were happening in my life that impacted me.

My mom, little sister, brother, and I were homeless from the beginning of my freshman year to the summer before my junior year. We stayed at my grandma’s house and slept on her living room floor. It was hard for all of us, my mom especially who worked full-time and was desperate to find a place to live. My dad is an addict, so he gave our family no support whatsoever and often made our situation even harder.

A photo of AIEF Scholar, Alberta, in a field dressed in regalia

These obstacles gave me a bond with my family that would never have been so close if this had not happened to us. I have also become a more mature, responsible, understanding, and compassionate human being because of this situation. These characteristics have helped me in my first year of being away at college. I have used my maturity and responsibility to take my schoolwork and extracurriculars very seriously as it is the key to the future I wish to have for myself. But not too seriously as my understanding and compassionate skills have come into work as I have and will continue to make relationships with others that will last many years.

As a student, I am very dedicated to my schoolwork and my education. I see my education as a ticket off the reservation to better myself so that I can come back and better my people. My grades were mostly A’s and B’s my whole life — I received one C in high school.

My first semester at college was very eye-opening which I feel was reflected in my grades. My time spent studying and doing homework took a nice-sized chunk out of my week and weekends. I am motivated by myself, my family, and the people here on the reservation. Here at BHSU, I am pursuing my degree in psychology. I want to eventually attend grad school and become a school counselor. My mom is my biggest supporter — she wants me to do this for myself so I can learn how to be my own person and be more than just one more person stuck on the reservation.

My ultimate goal is to return to my reservation to help with the lack of mental health resources and to be the person that someone can turn to if they are having a difficult time.

I have been involved in many different things in my community. My family and I have donated clothes, books, and toys to a shelter. Every year during Thanksgiving and Christmas, we make dinner plates and take them to the homeless shelter. I have babysat children while their parents were taking evening classes at the college. Being involved in activities gives me a stronger tie to the community. When I go to traditional community activities like sweat or different ceremonies, I help Elders if they need it, and help serve and pass out food. This is very common for women to do but it is a tradition that is dying very fast.

Financially, I will need a lot of assistance. My family will not be able to contribute a lot to my schooling. My mom is working full-time, going to school part-time, and taking care of two kids with no assistance back home. To help pay for my schooling, I am applying to as many scholarships as I am eligible for and I will be working in the summertime to help pay for school. Because I am planning to go to school for so long, it is best for me to get as much of it paid for as I possibly can. When people from the reservation leave to go to school, they become very overwhelmed by the cost of everything and end up dropping out because they can’t afford the tuition. I will not be one of these people. Pursuing my degree to help Indigenous people is too important to me to let it slip through my fingers because of cost.

Alberta's signature

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