These new Minneapolis College grads hope to lead the way for more Native American nurses

Minneapolis College hosted a “pinning ceremony” for its nursing program graduates recently — a ritual that confirmed their commitment to the profession.

It included a circle of Native American drummers performing an honor song to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of four graduating class members, Native American women who plan to become nurses.

“Natives are so underrepresented in nursing, and so having four in our class is such a huge deal,” said Shaneesa Scheckel, one of the four graduates and an Oglala Lakota tribe member. “It gave us a sense of family and comfort.”

Minneapolis College officials and the women themselves believe their success will draw other Native Americans into the nursing profession over time as the four nurses become role models for future generations.

According to American Nurse Journal, Native Americans, including Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, made up less than 1% of nurses in the United States in 2022. According to the U.S. Census, Native Americans made up about 3% of the country’s population that same year, but that count doesn’t include Native Hawaiians or Pacific Islanders.

The women are among 37 future registered nurses who officially graduated from the college Monday afternoon with an Associate of Science degree. They must still pass a national licensure exam to be employed as nurses.

“Even though four sounds like a small number, it’s the beginning of increasing the number of Native American students who enter a nursing program, because representation does matter,” said Sharon Pierce, president of Minneapolis College. “We thought, ‘This is fantastic. This is significant.‘”

Minneapolis College enrolls a small number of Native Americans — they make up about 1% of students, Pierce said.

Three of the women discovered each other when they began the nursing program two years ago; Nicole Poitra, from the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa of Belcourt, N.D., met them just last semester.

Two of them — Lolita Spotted Thunder Granados and Scheckel — quickly realized they had an even deeper connection because Scheckel’s grandmother is Granados’ godmother and they’re both Oglala Lakota. Granados is also from the Soboba Band of Luiseno.

“It was just like a ‘small world’ moment,” Scheckel said.

One of the four, Montana Moore, who is Oglala Lakota and Sicangu Lakota, said she is a “reconnecting Native” who has been trying to learn more about her culture because it wasn’t taught to her as a child. It made finding the group of fellow Indigenous women during her studies even more special, she said.

“I just felt so blessed that I had found a little family there with me,” Moore said.

The pinning ceremony began with the four women reading a Dakota land acknowledgement statement, which is read at every significant event at Minneapolis College.

People chosen by each graduate presented them with a nursing pin affixed to a purple and white ribbon; each of the Native women also had an eagle feather placed in their hair. Later, the entire class recited the Florence Nightingale pledge together.

The women, who range in age from early 30s to late 50s, reflected on their time in nursing school, including working through difficult classes, managing stress and maintaining a positive attitude.

They said there are several reasons why there aren’t many Native American nurses: Some don’t trust the health care system because of their own negative experiences or the experiences of Native people throughout U.S. history.

Growing up in South Dakota, Scheckel said, if tribal members needed health care, they first went to a local hospital. Then, if their needs were more complex, they were referred to a larger hospital, where they were disrespected because of where they were from.

“I was treated really badly,” Scheckel said.

Moore said Native people are underserved by the U.S. health care system, and some medical professionals believe harmful stereotypes about drinking and drug use.

“They will continue to get sicker because they don’t want to go and deal with that,” said Moore, noting her own chronic illness motivates her to support and advocate for people when she’s a nurse.

Granados said many Native people simply haven’t had the chance to consider a nursing career. Some tribal colleges have nursing programs, but getting there requires reliable transportation and money for gas, she said, along with other resources.

“If you don’t have those things to get to class, there goes your nursing program,” she said.

At the suggestion of an instructor, the women said they hope to continue meeting up with each other long term to provide support and help other Native nursing students.

Naomi Thomas, dean of the nursing, health sciences and wellness programs at Minneapolis College, said the school’s nursing program is diverse and staff are trained to be culturally responsive. Fifty-three percent of nursing students are people of color or Indigenous.

Community colleges have a mission of providing educational access to everyone, she said.

“I’m just grateful that we get to witness the culmination of our mission,” Thomas said.