Post by blackcrowheart on Jan 16, 2006 13:31:40 GMT -5
www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?display=rednews/2006/01/14/build/local/75-griffin.inc
MSU-B student works to improve himself, tribe
MSU-Billings News Service
Rory Griffin is on an educational journey.
On most days, he is a lot like any other college student. He worries
about keeping his grades up. He forgets to sleep when he gets tired.
But this day is a special day. Griffin sticks out just a little bit more
than usual.
He's wearing his best ceremonial garb, a bright-red long-sleeved cotton
shirt with some hand-sewn ornamentation and strips of fabric. A
relatively short man, he's walking a bit taller. And why not? He's
walking among warriors.
Many of the 100-plus guests at Montana State University-Billings'
Student Union Building attended this gathering of military veterans
because Griffin wanted to honor the duty and sacrifice of American
Indians in the region. He's a quiet man with the heart of a fighter.
* * *
Griffin, 29, has a young-at-heart sense of urgency to be involved with
making a difference in as many ways as possible.
He is excited about getting to the next level in his journey. That's the
only way he can truly help his people back in Wisconsin, he said.
"It only takes one person to make a difference," he said, his baritone
voice and dark-brown eyes emphasizing the point.
His ultimate goals are to run for the U.S. House of Representatives or
U.S. Senate. He said those positions are best suited to help the
Menominee people make advances in wildlife and ecosystems protection on
the reservation that could eventually lead to a better life for
everyone.
According to the federal government, the Menominee Indian Reservation
has had to deal with poverty levels between 39 and 64 percent, and has a
high juvenile crime rate and high rates of educational failure. About
half of the Menominee people live off the reservation. As far as Griffin
is concerned, his job is to help turn those trends around.
Since transferring to MSU-Billings from Rocky Mountain College about a
year ago, Griffin has found a home in the Inter-Tribal Indian Club and
in doing outreach for causes, including speeches about American Indian
issues before the Montana Board of Regents in September and organizing
the "Gathering of Warriors" event in November.
"He's an amazing young man," said Quentin Gilham, coordinator of
Multicultural Student Services on campus.
Gilham said he has come to appreciate Griffin's leadership qualities of
rolling up his sleeves and getting the job done. When Gilham needed help
erecting a tepee for Native American Heritage Day in late September,
there was Griffin, making sure the ropes and poles were in the right
place for a sturdy structure.
When members of the club were asked about who could talk with the Board
of Regents about the importance of American Indian involvement on
campus, a near-unanimous response came back: Rory.
* * *
Griffin acknowledges that getting to this point in his life has been a
struggle. He was one of those statistics as a youth and teen. He dropped
out of school. He ran afoul of the law.
But something in him awoke when he was in his early 20s. He realized all
his options were closed without an education.
"I was tired of being told 'no,'" he said.
He got his general equivalency diploma, and started taking junior
college classes at the College of Menominee Nation and working on
projects to improve the reservation. He was awarded the Wisconsin Indian
Higher Education's Undergraduate Student of the Year award in 2002 and
was named an American Indian College Fund Tribal Scholar in 2003. That
award also included a David and Lucile Packard Foundation two-year
science scholarship, which paid for his education.
He was the president of student government at the College of Menominee
Nation for two semesters and helped lead the way for construction of a
student commons and adopted a stretch of highway for a cleanup project
for the college and the students.
He also formed and ran a college Democrats group on the reservation for
about 18 months and helped get Menominees involved in politics. He spent
a portion of last summer at Cornell University doing undergraduate
studies on environmental issues.
Griffin is now heavily involved in 400-level classes on environmental
issues such as Eco-Feminism and Art and the Environment, and he's
looking forward to completing his degree in a year.
He lives in the dorms with students years his junior. Being an older
student in the residence halls, he gets a chance to set an example both
in academics and as an American Indian. And he doesn't pull back from
his responsibility in either arena.
His short-cropped hair is often topped with a "Native Pride" cap, and
his arms are typically full of books and his backpack. While he is
walking in the world of higher education on a nearly all-white Montana
campus, he is also making mental strides back home.
"I'm learning a Western education while at the same time keeping my
identity," he said.
Eventually, he wants to apply his environmental studies education to the
Menominee Tribe.
"This educational journey is no longer about me," Griffin said. "It is
about my people and the environment. If it's not with that interest in
mind, then it would be selfish. The education I'm getting is just a
piece of the puzzle."
* * *
Griffin is one of about 246 American Indians enrolled at MSU-Billings
and one of a growing number of students active in the Inter-Tribal
Indian Club. The club is closely linked to the Multicultural Student
Services program at the university, which promotes educational
achievement for ethnic minorities while encouraging individual, social,
cultural and emotional growth.
The program also offers advisement in academic, personal, financial,
social and career areas for minority students as well serving as a
tribal and community liaison.
Griffin said being at MSU-Billings and working with others in the
Inter-Tribal Indian Club has helped him with his goals of bringing more
awareness of American Indian issues here and at home. That's what led
him to push for an event in November to honor American Indian veterans.
Joe Cobos, who works on outreach and student recruiting for the Montana
Veterans Upward Bound program at MSU-Billings, said Griffin came to him
with the idea of honoring veterans - from World War II to Korea to
Desert Storm - in a celebration around Veterans Day.
Cobos, a retired master sergeant with the U.S. Marine Corps, said he was
happy to have Griffin work on the project that also included a 230th
birthday celebration for the Marine Corps.
More than 100 people showed up for the event, including city and county
dignitaries and representatives of Montana's congressional delegation.
Standing amid the onlookers are decorated soldiers, ramrod straight,
bearing flags, coup sticks and arm patches from faraway battles. Griffin
wends his way through the crowd, checking on a few details here and
there. It's a day to give honor and give thanks.
And sitting down with the Northern Cheyenne drummers to sing a flag
song, that's exactly what Griffin does. It's another part of his
educational journey.
MSU-B student works to improve himself, tribe
MSU-Billings News Service
Rory Griffin is on an educational journey.
On most days, he is a lot like any other college student. He worries
about keeping his grades up. He forgets to sleep when he gets tired.
But this day is a special day. Griffin sticks out just a little bit more
than usual.
He's wearing his best ceremonial garb, a bright-red long-sleeved cotton
shirt with some hand-sewn ornamentation and strips of fabric. A
relatively short man, he's walking a bit taller. And why not? He's
walking among warriors.
Many of the 100-plus guests at Montana State University-Billings'
Student Union Building attended this gathering of military veterans
because Griffin wanted to honor the duty and sacrifice of American
Indians in the region. He's a quiet man with the heart of a fighter.
* * *
Griffin, 29, has a young-at-heart sense of urgency to be involved with
making a difference in as many ways as possible.
He is excited about getting to the next level in his journey. That's the
only way he can truly help his people back in Wisconsin, he said.
"It only takes one person to make a difference," he said, his baritone
voice and dark-brown eyes emphasizing the point.
His ultimate goals are to run for the U.S. House of Representatives or
U.S. Senate. He said those positions are best suited to help the
Menominee people make advances in wildlife and ecosystems protection on
the reservation that could eventually lead to a better life for
everyone.
According to the federal government, the Menominee Indian Reservation
has had to deal with poverty levels between 39 and 64 percent, and has a
high juvenile crime rate and high rates of educational failure. About
half of the Menominee people live off the reservation. As far as Griffin
is concerned, his job is to help turn those trends around.
Since transferring to MSU-Billings from Rocky Mountain College about a
year ago, Griffin has found a home in the Inter-Tribal Indian Club and
in doing outreach for causes, including speeches about American Indian
issues before the Montana Board of Regents in September and organizing
the "Gathering of Warriors" event in November.
"He's an amazing young man," said Quentin Gilham, coordinator of
Multicultural Student Services on campus.
Gilham said he has come to appreciate Griffin's leadership qualities of
rolling up his sleeves and getting the job done. When Gilham needed help
erecting a tepee for Native American Heritage Day in late September,
there was Griffin, making sure the ropes and poles were in the right
place for a sturdy structure.
When members of the club were asked about who could talk with the Board
of Regents about the importance of American Indian involvement on
campus, a near-unanimous response came back: Rory.
* * *
Griffin acknowledges that getting to this point in his life has been a
struggle. He was one of those statistics as a youth and teen. He dropped
out of school. He ran afoul of the law.
But something in him awoke when he was in his early 20s. He realized all
his options were closed without an education.
"I was tired of being told 'no,'" he said.
He got his general equivalency diploma, and started taking junior
college classes at the College of Menominee Nation and working on
projects to improve the reservation. He was awarded the Wisconsin Indian
Higher Education's Undergraduate Student of the Year award in 2002 and
was named an American Indian College Fund Tribal Scholar in 2003. That
award also included a David and Lucile Packard Foundation two-year
science scholarship, which paid for his education.
He was the president of student government at the College of Menominee
Nation for two semesters and helped lead the way for construction of a
student commons and adopted a stretch of highway for a cleanup project
for the college and the students.
He also formed and ran a college Democrats group on the reservation for
about 18 months and helped get Menominees involved in politics. He spent
a portion of last summer at Cornell University doing undergraduate
studies on environmental issues.
Griffin is now heavily involved in 400-level classes on environmental
issues such as Eco-Feminism and Art and the Environment, and he's
looking forward to completing his degree in a year.
He lives in the dorms with students years his junior. Being an older
student in the residence halls, he gets a chance to set an example both
in academics and as an American Indian. And he doesn't pull back from
his responsibility in either arena.
His short-cropped hair is often topped with a "Native Pride" cap, and
his arms are typically full of books and his backpack. While he is
walking in the world of higher education on a nearly all-white Montana
campus, he is also making mental strides back home.
"I'm learning a Western education while at the same time keeping my
identity," he said.
Eventually, he wants to apply his environmental studies education to the
Menominee Tribe.
"This educational journey is no longer about me," Griffin said. "It is
about my people and the environment. If it's not with that interest in
mind, then it would be selfish. The education I'm getting is just a
piece of the puzzle."
* * *
Griffin is one of about 246 American Indians enrolled at MSU-Billings
and one of a growing number of students active in the Inter-Tribal
Indian Club. The club is closely linked to the Multicultural Student
Services program at the university, which promotes educational
achievement for ethnic minorities while encouraging individual, social,
cultural and emotional growth.
The program also offers advisement in academic, personal, financial,
social and career areas for minority students as well serving as a
tribal and community liaison.
Griffin said being at MSU-Billings and working with others in the
Inter-Tribal Indian Club has helped him with his goals of bringing more
awareness of American Indian issues here and at home. That's what led
him to push for an event in November to honor American Indian veterans.
Joe Cobos, who works on outreach and student recruiting for the Montana
Veterans Upward Bound program at MSU-Billings, said Griffin came to him
with the idea of honoring veterans - from World War II to Korea to
Desert Storm - in a celebration around Veterans Day.
Cobos, a retired master sergeant with the U.S. Marine Corps, said he was
happy to have Griffin work on the project that also included a 230th
birthday celebration for the Marine Corps.
More than 100 people showed up for the event, including city and county
dignitaries and representatives of Montana's congressional delegation.
Standing amid the onlookers are decorated soldiers, ramrod straight,
bearing flags, coup sticks and arm patches from faraway battles. Griffin
wends his way through the crowd, checking on a few details here and
there. It's a day to give honor and give thanks.
And sitting down with the Northern Cheyenne drummers to sing a flag
song, that's exactly what Griffin does. It's another part of his
educational journey.