Twelve members of the LA junior class enrolled in the Global Scholars Program have partnered with the educational organization The Empathy Equality Entrepreneurship Mission (TEEEM) and the non-profit organization One Spirit to support the needs of the Lakota Nation on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.
It has been a very busy month for this group, which consists of Adam Eisdorfer ’24, Tapleen Kaur ’25, Oliver Laskow ’25, Amelie Leu ’25, Hope Nasulme ’25, Aarya Patel ’25, Giselle Rodriguez ’25, Jasteij Sappal ’25, Rajwans Sindhar ’25, Arjun Vora ’25, Kate Wolff ’25 and Daniel Zaidi ’25.
At Fall Fair, the students sold beaded jewelry and other handmade crafts made on the One Ridge Reservation, bringing in about $1,000 in sales and donations. On October 24, five members of the group represented LA at the TEEEM Fall Leadership Symposium at Ramapo College. At the event, they were given an opportunity to visit with other TEEEM schools, work with Jeri Baker, Director of One Spirit, and listen to and learn from a variety of speakers and presentations.
Then, on the following day, a member of the Lakota Nation, Starr, came to visit with the group during lunch. The students, Starr and Jeri, along with Taylor DeMaio of TEEEM and Nicole Nolan, LA Director of Global Scholars and Community Outreach, discussed the needs of the reservation, activities the school can facilitate to support them, virtual partnerships, and plans for an upcoming trip to South Dakota in late August of 2024.