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Summer 2009 Newsletter
To see a formatted version of the newsletter, click here. Save the Date for the Fund’s 20th Anniversary Gala Celebration October 28, 2009 Performances by Native dancers and drum groups will also be held, along with a fine arts auction and program about the history of the Fund. For more information or to reserve your tickets, please contact Lucia Novara at 303-426-8900 ext. 308 or lnovara@collegefund.org. The Musburgers also got a surprise when their office was swamped by calls from fans inquiring about the hat. They decided to make the hats available for sale, and Jackson, a longtime supporter of the American Indian College Fund (the Fund), directed that proceeds from the sales support the Fund for American Indian college students with scholarships. To show this support, the hat includes the American Indian College Fund’s logo on the back of the hat at the request of Jackson. Richard B. Williams, President and CEO of the Fund, said “The American Indian College Fund is honored to have been selected by Phil Jackson to benefit from the sale of the Phil Jackson X Hat. Phil Jackson’s spirit and winning ways are intertwined with the spirit of Indian people through his generosity. Phil Jackson is the greatest NBA coach ever, and he is a great humanitarian. Throughout his career he has contributed to improving the lives of American Indian people and we are very thankful. Pilamiya Yelo! (Thank you).” To demonstrate your support for a cause dear to Phil's heart, reserve your Phil Jackson X Hat by calling 1-303-426-8900. Hats are one-size fits most FlexFit, yellow with purple details, and made of wool and acrylic blend. They are priced at $25 plus shipping and handling. Fund Supporters Show Dedication to American Indian Education Throughout Spring CocaCola Foundation provided 46 first-generation students with $5,000 scholarships for students’ tuition and fees, and funds to honor the students at the annual American Indian Higher Education Consortium Student Conference in Missoula, Montana. If first-generation students maintain at least a 3.0 grade point average and show strong participation in campus and community life, the scholarship follows the student throughout their academic career while attending a tribal college. Another long-time supporter, ExxonMobil Foundation, announced a $44,000 gift. Supporters MetLife announced a $15,000 gift, and IBM announced a $15,000 gift. The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians renewed its commitment to American Indian education with a grant of $100,000 to the Fund for scholarships benefiting Native students. Fifty thousand dollars of the grant will be used for the Sovereign Nations Scholarship Fund Endowment (SNSFE). The Ben Plucknett Charitable Trust also contributed to the SNSFE by granting the Fund $10,000. The Paul and Edith Babson Foundation renewed their grant of $10,000 to provide scholarships to Nebraska Indian Community College students studying business or entrepreneurial fields. The Tierney Family Foundation provided $10,000 grant to support general scholarships. We would like to welcome two new American Indian College Fund supporters to the fold of organizations supporting American Indian education. The Dallas-Texas based Embrey Family Foundation, announced a $25,000 grant to support scholarships for American Indian students from current or historic Colorado tribes. And the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation granted the Fund $10,000. The foundation has just begun awarding grants and we are honored to be among the first of their recipients. We would like to issue a heartfelt wopila tanka (many thanks) to all of our supporters who make the dream of an education a possibility for so many American Indian students. June’s Colorado Community Event Introduces Fund's Neighbors to Native Community
The Fund’s headquarters have been based in Denver for the past 12 years, and to help build awareness about its presence in Colorado, it hosted the event at the Colorado History Museum to introduce local business leaders and community members to not only the Fund, but the American Indian community. In addition to Yellowhawk’s speech, attendees had the opportunity to hear a tribal college president’s perspective about the importance of culturally based education from Dr. Richard Little Bear, a linguist who has revived the Northern Cheyenne language at Chief Dull Knife College in Montana. The American Indian College Fund relies on relationships with individuals, corporations, and foundations to support the 33 tribal colleges located in more than 12 states that serve America’s Indian tribes. In addition, the Fund distributes an average of 5,000 scholarships to American Indian students annually. |
Please direct media inquiries to Dina Horwedel at (303) 426-8900. |
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When Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson won his tenth NBA championship this season, his friends and agents, the father-son team of Todd and Brian Musburger, created a special hat to surprise him. The yellow cap is inscribed with a purple X, denoting the ten championships he has won: six with the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s, and four with the Los Angeles Lakers in the new millennium.
Numerous Fund supporters renewed their support for the American Indian College Fund this spring. Nissan North America, Inc. announced it is renewing its commitment to American Indian education in 2009-10 by donating $85,000 to the American Indian College Fund through its Corporate Scholars Program. The grant will fund ten tribal college scholarships and five mainstream scholarships for American Indian scholars. Nissan North America, Inc. also provided $20,000 for the Fund's 20th anniversary gala fundraising event to be held in Denver at the Seawall Ballroom, Denver Center for the Performing Arts October 28 to bring in further scholarship donations.
Tribal college student Stephen Yellow Hawk spoke Thursday, June 4, at the American Indian College Fund’s Colorado Community Celebration in Denver. Yellowhawk received the Student of the Year award for 2008-09 from Oglala Lakota College, yet he talked openly about the many challenges and joys in his life—beginning with his childhood on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation, to learning to speak his Native Lakota language, to the challenges of juggling fatherhood and family financial responsibilities while studying at college. His goal as a teacher is to serve as a role model and mentor, while teaching young children to embrace their identity as American Indian people. 
But achieving his mission has not always been easy for Yellowhawk, and he is not alone. He says without a scholarship from the American Indian College Fund, he could not have attended college. The financial hardships Yellowhawk faces are similar to those facing many of his peers, and are compounded by high rates of unemployment and poverty in American Indian communities, particularly on Indian reservations. Nearly 26% percent of all American Indians and Alaska Natives live below the poverty line, contrasted with a national poverty rate of 12.4%. 
The gap is even larger for people living on reservations with limited economic opportunities, with 51% of the population living below the poverty line. And even though the nation’s poverty rate dropped from 11.8% in 1999 to 11.3 % in 2000 (the lowest in 21 years), American Indian’s and Alaska Native’s poverty rate did not drop, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Yellowhawk said the American Indian College Fund’s scholarships have helped him to achieve his dream. 
There also was a silent auction, Northern and Southern Plains Indian dance performances, crafts for children, and a prominent Native American weaver giving demonstrations, and, behind the scenes, the building of connections. The event was co-hosted by the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce. USA Funds of Indianapolis, Indiana was a financial sponsor of the event.