Winds of Change - College 2016 - 7

Wendi Cole CROW CREEK SIOUX SOUTHWESTERN INDIAN POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE Pre-Engineering and CADD NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING AND TECHNOLOGY Mineral Engineering COURTESY OF WENDI COLE I think I was born an engineer - always fixing things that were broken, making new things out of old ones, and rigging things to work the way I wanted them to. I'm the first engineer in my family. I was adopted when I was just a baby, and I grew up feeling a little unsure of myself and out of place. I think that's why I like engineering - it finds answers and makes things fit into place. I call Yankton, S.D., my hometown, but I lived in numerous places in the Midwest growing up. They were mostly small towns without much diversity. I never had a positive feeling about my Native heritage until I attended Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI), where I earned my associate's degree in pre-engineering and a certificate in computeraided drafting and design in 2013. I'm Crow Creek Sioux, and I grew up in a single-parent household with my mom, who is Rosebud Sioux. My mom aises.org graduated with her college degree in her fifties, which has been an inspiration to me. She showed me that, even though I'm a single parent too, I can get an education. At first, all I wanted was to get a two-year degree from SIPI so I could get a good job to support my family. But after getting involved with school projects and club activities, such as the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and AISES, I learned that I had so much more potential - and even more opportunities to go further with my education. In 2012, I wrote a proposal that my AISES College Chapter submitted for a geoscience grant through AISES. We were awarded the grant and my chapter was able to do community outreach and research into geothermal energy resources. During this project, I did research in geology, mineral resources, and energy production. I also volunteered at the Tribal Energy Conference and attended a Department of the Interior Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement forum at the coal mines in northwestern New Mexico. I learned a lot about reclaiming land after mining. These experiences led me to want to pursue a bachelor's of science in mineral engineering. Then, in 2013, I was selected from around 1,800 eligible students to be on the All-USA Community College Academic Team, which consists of only 20 members from around the country. I was told that I was the first Native to ever receive a place on the team, which recognizes high-achieving two-year college students. I received the highest score in the state of New Mexico, and won the New Century Scholar award sponsored by Coca-Cola. My rewards included a full-tuition scholarship to any school in New Mexico. SIPI had prepared me well for a four-year school. I transferred to the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (NMT), which was a little faster paced, with more students in core classes. It took a few months to get used to that. Time was a big hurdle for me. My son has Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism. For a while, he could attend school for only half the day, so I began SIPI as a part-time student. After transferring to NMT, I didn't want to move my son because he was doing well where he was. So I commuted to and from class at NMT in Socorro, N.M., from Albuquerque - about 80 miles away. I did this until my last year at NMT, when I won a scholarship from the Freeport-McMoRan Foundation that helped me afford a place to stay in Socorro during class days. Because of that scholarship, I saved time commuting, increased my course load, and graduated six months early. I currently work as an operations associate for Peabody Western Coal Company at the Kayenta Mine in Kayenta, Ariz. However, I live in Flagstaff, which means I have to take a plane to work every day. I am now the lead of air quality and also getting involved with water quality. Using a program called SEDCAD, I designed a diversion channel that is currently being constructed. I'm excited to see one of my designs become a very important part of a mine in real life. I'd like to be an engineering project manager in the future. As a single mom with a special-needs child, being able to get an engineering degree says that I can do just about anything now. It wasn't easy, but along the way I developed a wonderful support system. Perseverance, persistence, and positivity got me this far. My advice to other Native students: start at a tribal school such as SIPI. It's there that I learned to be proud of my Native heritage. I hope others can relate to my story, and get inspired to be better. Today that might be hard, but it needs to be, so that tomorrow can be easier. - As told to Stephanie Mann 2016-2017 SPECIAL COLLEGE ISSUE * WINDS OF CHANGE 7 http://www.aises.org

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