Aaniiih Nakoda College Celebrates their 30th Commencement

The Aaniiih Nakoda College Board of Directors and President Carole Falcon-Chandler welcomes all to the 30th Commencement Ceremony on Thursday, May 10, 2018. The commencement will be held at the Harlem High School Gymnasium at 5:30 p.m. ANC will have 41 potential graduates from Business to Carpentry. ANC will graduate two nurse education students with their Associate Degree of Nursing. The commencement address will be given by Miss Sharen Kickingwoman. A celebration feed will immediately follow the ceremony.

Sharen Kickingwoman is a member of the Aaniiihnen and Blackfeet tribes. Her Blackfeet name is Siks Awakasi Akii, Black Tail Deer Woman and Soo ksistsi Koo Akii, Cloud Woman. Miss Kickingwoman holds both her bachelors and master's degrees from Stanford University, where she studied Native education and policy. She currently works as a Legislative Assistant handling Indian Affairs issues for U.S. Senator Jon Tester in Washington, D.C. During her time at Stanford she studied in South Africa, Costa Rica, and served as a White House Intern under President Obama. Miss Kickingwoman held many leadership positions within the Stanford community, working as a program assistant, on a Social Justice Taskforce, and chairing the Stanford Powwow. She is a Gates Millennium Scholar, received the Stanford Award of Excellence for being in the top 10% of her class and was named the Montana Indian Education College Student of the Year in 2017.

Miss Kickingwoman is an advocate for youth and her favorite experiences come from working directly with youth. During her undergraduate years, she worked with first-generation, low-income, and/or minority students assisting with access to higher education through free college counseling and mentorship. She also served as an Upward Bound counselor at the University of Montana working directly with students through mentorship and college-readiness. She is inspired by all those who have come before her and have mentored her along the way.