Page 15 - 2022 May Report

Resilience
Gonzaga University MBA-AIE graduation report
By: Lady Hereford and Sharon Wood
The Graduation Weekend celebrations started with a luncheon on Friday honoring both Cohort XIII graduating this weekend and Cohort XII that had graduated in May of 2020 without any in-person celebrations. Four of the six from the 2020 class were there with their families. Eight of the nine from the 2022 class and their families were there. Thanks to COVID-19, this was only the second time that Cohort XIII had been able to actually get together in person. In spite of that, the comradery and cohort spirit was strong. Also, there were quite a few of the Gonzaga professors including Dr. Raymond Reyes who has been teaching in the program since the very first Cohort, and Dr. Dan Stewart who is well known to JSF as a long-time professor and for his participation in the Indigenous Peoples Programing Convening in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Following the traditional land acknowledgement, the husband, young son, and daughter of one of the Cohort XIII graduates sang and drummed an “Honoring Song”. During the course of the luncheon, every graduate had an opportunity to express what this program has meant to them and where they are now working. Four of the nine will be pursuing Ph.Ds. That’s a pretty impressive number. Sharon spoke briefly on how this program came to exist and congratulated all of them for the work that it took to obtain their MBA-AIE degrees. Jarett Medicine Elk gave a very moving Graduation Address encouraging his fellow graduates to continue to pursue their dreams no matter what the cost. He spoke passionately about confronting the challenges that face Native communities, and he exhorted his fellow graduates to continue to support one another during dark times.
Friday afternoon, Sharon and Lady met with Mirjeta Beqiri, MBA Program Director, and Tina Swannack, MBA-AIE Program Coordinator. MirjetastartedbyelaboratingontheStudyAbroad trip to Italy that 5 members of Cohort XIII will be doing later this month. The trip will include site visits to several businesses, including a car manufacturer, winery, blacksmith and a grower who uses sustainable agriculture. They will not technically graduate until they return in early June as they must be students to participate in this opportunity with Mirjeta, several Gonzaga Business professors and a dozen other MBA students. Starting next year, Study Abroad will be a mandatory part of the MBA-AIE program, with plans
to go to New Zealand.
The graduation ceremony for all GU graduate students on Saturday included a brief commencement address by businessman and philanthropist Terry Payne, who has provided scholarship support for Native students at Gonzaga. His message was about hope and loving others. Everyone then gathered on the Herak Quad Field for a champagne toast social.
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