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Native American Studies, B.A. | Class of
Daniel Holsapple
Community Garden Manager/Environmental Programs Assistant/Youth Programs Coordinator
Employer: Blue Lake Rancheria
Job description: My primary duty at Blue Lake Rancheria is the management of the Tribe's Daluviwi' Community Garden. With help from interns and volunteers I grow food for the Tribe's Elder's Nutrition Program, Casino restaurants, and for our new Community Garden farm stand. As the Environmental Programs Assistant I help the rest of the staff in the Environmental Programs Department with air and water quality monitoring and outreach, salmon counts, cultural resource monitoring, native plant propagation, stream restoration, and other related projects. As the Youth Programs Coordinator, I help develop and provide agriculture-focused experiential learning opportunities for Native youth and community members.
About Daniel
Why did you choose this program?
I grew up on the California coast in ancestral Awaswas Ohlone territory. As I grew up I learned more and more about the true history of settler colonialism in this country while also developing a love for native plants and the natural places that make the region so special. I chose the Native American Studies Program at HSU so that my work can support Tribal sovereignty and the many Indigenous cultures here in California and elsewhere.
How did this program prepare you for your job?
In the Native American Studies Program I was taught, among many other things, about Tribal culture, governance, land management, law, water rights, and the history of the Rancheria/Reservation system both in North America and more specifically in Northern California. This helped prepare me to work for a Tribal government and to use skills developed at HSU and earlier to support the Tribe's environmental, educational, and food sovereignty efforts.
What did you enjoy most about the program?
I most enjoyed learning about Indigenous land management practices and about the great diversity of languages that are thriving and being revitalized in California and beyond. I was also inspired by all of the Indigenous authors, artists, poets, orators, craftspeople, musicians, and leaders that we learned about in the Native American Studies Program. I was constantly being exposed to a world that I had not been adequately introduced to by the American public education system in my youth.
What would you say to prospective students who are thinking about applying to this program?
Earning my Bachelors Degree in Native American Studies was one of the best decisions I ever made in my life. I would recommend it to anyone who wishes to expand their understanding of the world and to serve and support their communities. It is an amazing, inspirational program with excellent staff and has something to offer everybody.