Federal Way High School junior Aiyana Dawson made history this summer.
She was one of only five non-tribally sponsored teenagers from Western Washington to attend the White House Tribal Youth Gathering in Washington D.C., the first government-sponsored gathering of Native American teenagers from throughout the United States, in July. Additional Western Washington students attended under the sponsorship of the Tulalip and Puyallup tribes.
Aiyana’s journey to the White House began last year, when President Barack Obama launched the Generation Indigenous (Gen-I) initiative. Working with the Aspen Institute’s Center for Native American Youth and the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Obama Administration encouraged Native youth and related organizations to help establish a National Native Youth Network by accepting the Gen-I challenge.
The challenge included taking positive action in one’s community and sharing the results using words and images on social media. Once this was completed, challenge acceptors could apply to participate in the White House Tribal Youth Gathering.
Aiyana and other native teenagers from 20 Western Washington school districts were already involved in an ambitious collaboration to create a leadership program for Native American high school-aged youth.
The program, supported by the Western Washington Native American Education Consortium, launched this past school year and Aiyana was one of the students selected to be in the inaugural class. She, along with teenagers from urban areas across the region, dedicated herself to developing her leadership skills and building cultural awareness and connections over the course of a full school year.
A descendant of the Nooksack tribe, Aiyana takes Cambridge classes and is involved in several clubs and afterschool activities. She is an independent and motivated student, Federal Way Public Schools Native American coordinator Maxine Alex said.
“She’s a natural leader; she welcomes new experiences and challenges that come her way. She is proud of all her heritages,” Alex added.
Aiyana has actively participated in Federal Way’s Native Education Program throughout high school. The new program, Native American Youth Leadership Academy, allowed her to challenge herself in new ways, and she was excited to be a part of the experience.
“At school I am involved in my Native American Club; at club meetings I learn the culture of Indian Americans,” Aiyana said. But the academy’s regional focus and leadership curriculum has added breadth and depth to her learning. She emphasizes that the highlight was getting to know other Indian youth from around the area and learning about how they live and how they want to be able to be leaders in their community.
The academy took a collaborative approach to the Gen-I challenge. Working with advisors such as Alex, students shared the story of their new leadership program by writing essays and, together, they applied to join the Tribal Youth Gathering. Of the students who completed the application, five were selected to attend the event in Washington D.C. Aiyana was the only participant selected from Federal Way.
The summit included moderated panels and addresses from U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, Attorney General Rebecca Lynch, Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), and National Congress of American Indians President Brian Cladoosby, among others. The keynote speaker was First Lady Michelle Obama, who followed her inspirational message by going out into the audience to meet the students personally.
Now that Aiyana is back home, she’s preparing for her senior year and thinking about college choices, practicing with the Federal Way High School Cheer Squad, working and occasionally enjoying some down time. For this Federal Way teen leader, the Tribal Youth Gathering has been a game changer, creating a new sense of connection and responsibility.
