Part of HIST 301: Indigenous Histories at Carleton (Fall 2024). Prof. Meredith McCoy, Carleton College.
By Dani Reynoso ’25
What are the untold stories of the places we inhabit? Though Carleton is a relatively small school, thousands of students have graduated since its establishment in 1866. Yet not many have been able to share stories about what their time here was like. Insights into the lives of former students are available to us in a few forms, with the archives offering glimpses into past events, traditions, and student organizations. However, despite these resources, many stories remain undocumented, particularly those of students of color, whose voices have often been marginalized within institutional historical records. This limited representation influences the way we understand our history. Early records of Native students and other students of color are sparse, though sometimes available if one thoroughly searches old archived websites. This unintentionally reflects a larger history of predominantly white institutions remembering certain student narratives more than others.
The lives, challenges, and contributions of early students of color as trailblazers haven’t been fully captured in official records, even though it’s undeniable that these students’ actions have impacted campus life for BIPOC students today. So, how can we learn about the stories of students who have come before us? One way to help us understand these perspectives is by looking at the history of cultural organizations on campus. Cultural orgs are created and survive thanks to the energy and time commitment students put into running their respective organizations, which serve as community spaces for cultural groups on campus. Since student orgs are managed by current students, the ebb and flow of their activity is dependent on the number of participants, since there’s a minimum requirement. This blog will focus on Carleton’s Native student groups (there’s been a single group active at a time, but it has been repeatedly revitalized under different names and leadership). Through these groups, Native students have built community and raised awareness, but even when the Native student population was too low for the org to function, Native students created their own communities on campus, effectively working against perceptions of institutional invisibility.
For this blog, I interviewed two Native alumni who graduated ten years apart, one in 2009 and another in 2019, and who have stayed engaged with Carleton. From these interviews, I hope to analyze what activities on campus these students were involved in and compare the presence of the Native student organizations. I also want to use these interviews to share the stories that Native alumni have, with the hope that it can benefit students now and in the future.
I interviewed Broderick Dressen (Alaska Native: Iñupiat) on October 21st, 2024. Broderick grew up near the Prairie Island Indian Community, only 40 minutes away from campus. Graduating from Carleton in 2009 as a Political Science major, he currently resides in Minneapolis and works as a public speaker. While on campus, Broderick worked as an intramural sports monitor, treasurer and VP of the Parliamentary Debate Team, and treasurer for the Ebony dance group. During his freshman year, he knew of only four Native students, two of whom had to leave school by the end of Winter Term. During this time the organization was known as ANPO, the American Native People’s Organization. While some records indicate that the group was active on and off until 2010, there is no evidence of activity in the archives after 2005. With too few students to maintain ANPO during this time, Broderick found community in other spaces that weren’t specifically dedicated to Native students. During his time here, he attended events hosted by other cultural orgs, finding himself at La Casa del Sol for food, ASIA house movie nights and dinners, Black House dances and dinners, and TRIO events (certain events are open to the entire student body, not just TRIO students). He said that these places were, “where I found community as well. So I showed up to a lot of those events.”
I also interviewed Roger Faust (Ho-Chunk) on October 15th, 2024. Roger grew up in Omaha and graduated in 2019 as a Biology major. He just completed his PhD last summer and is currently working at Carleton as a Postdoctoral Fellow, on the way to becoming a tenured professor. While at Carleton he played lacrosse and did research with a current Biology professor. His interaction with the Native student organization at the time was a positive one. IPA had just started in 2015, the middle of his freshman year, and he was approached by another Native student due to a tribal-looking pattern on his bookbag, and after disclosing his identity, was invited to hang out with the group. During this time, there were still only a handful of Native students on campus, but they made the group open to non-Native students who were generally interested in learning more about different Indigenous cultures. Because of this, although there were few Native students, non-Native friends were able to join the group and hang out. Roger appreciated his time with the group but noted that at the end of his Junior year, “..it was a small community and then once they graduated like, I was just like, I don’t know where anyone else is.” So in 2018 when the founders of IPA graduated, the group ceased to exist until it was revitalized in 2021.
These different experiences with these Native Student organizations speak to the organization’s fluctuation. But regardless of the extent of its existence, Native students have built and maintained their own communities on campus, whether this be in physical activities (dance and lacrosse) or academic ones. Having a community is one of the largest factors in ensuring Native students’ persistence in higher education. Historically, Native students have been the most underrepresented in Higher Ed. Hindering factors have varied over time, but most of them involve a lack of student support (financial, academic, personal) as well as strained connections to their communities. Broderick reflected on the lack of ANPO by stating he, “personally glommed onto what was available for other students of color because there wasn’t much and I was fortunate that I lived so close to home already that when I needed that boost of Native life, Native culture, I could just go home.” Unfortunately, not all students have this opportunity, which could be why two of the four Native students Broderick knew of had to leave campus. Students should not have to leave campus to feel supported but instead should feel so while on campus through various resources (administration, faculty, peers, spaces on campus, etc.). Being intentional with student organizations goes beyond just showing the physical presence of Native students (though this is just as important). A study from 2008 found that “participation at American Indian student centers can lead to academic and social engagement for American Indian students and, subsequently, can contribute to retaining this particular group.” Having a space for these students promotes persistence at Carleton. If we put into place programmatic support for Native students, we can ensure that they feel supported and encouraged to thrive at Carleton.
Works Cited
- “Gathering Our Memories: Reflections of Multicultural Student Life at Carleton, 1874-2000.” Carleton College: Gathering 2000: Gathering Our Memories, September 14, 2000.
- Broderick Dressen, Interviewed by Dani Reynoso through Zoom call on October 21st, 2024.
- “CSA Senate releases 2005-2006 projected budget for student orgs.” The Carletonian, May 27, 2005. Collection PB008: Carletonian, The, 1877–, Series 14: 2000/01 to 2009/10, Folder 128: 2004/2005, Item 24, Carleton College Archives.
- Russell, Tate. “Organizing an Org: How I Started My Club.” Carleton Admissions, July 30, 2022.
- Study cited in text: Findings from 2008 on American Indian student center engagement.
