> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.sdnewswatch.org/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How Maȟpíya Lúta's alumni network became a workforce recruitment strategy - URL: https://www.sdnewswatch.org/mahpiya-lutas-alumni-network-workforce-recruitment/ - Published: 2026-11-11T10:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-11T10:00:00.000Z - Description: At this school on the Pine Ridge Reservation, alumni don't just donate to their alma mater – they build its future. - Author: Molly Wetsch - Tags: News/Investigations, Indigenous It's hard to say just how many of the current faculty and staff members at Maȟpíya Lúta formerly attended the school themselves. But it's certainly enough to call it a pattern. The private school on the Pine Ridge Reservation has been around for over a century, first as the Holy Rosary Mission, then Red Cloud Indian School. In 2023, it formally changed its name to Maȟpíya Lúta Owáyawa, the Lakota translation. Schools across the state are facing challenges with hiring and retaining staff – [especially in Oglala Lakota County](https://southdakotasearchlight.com/2026/07/07/should-teachers-pass-test-shortages-lead-consideration-certification-alternatives/?ref=sdnewswatch.org), where the school is located. But Maȟpíya Lúta has found outsized success in workforce recruitment, high graduation rates and post-secondary achievement for its students. Much of it can likely be attributed to the fact that alumni of the school seem to come back in droves, whether to work as teachers, support staff or in other positions, according to staff members. This story came from our Engage South Dakota reporting in the 572 region. [Read News Watch's profiles of people from the region](https://www.sdnewswatch.org/engage-south-dakota-zip-code-577-west/). ## Alumni come back to school for diverse jobs Araceli Spotted Thunder is the gift shop manager of the Čhantkú Arts Center – formerly known as the Heritage Center – which saw a grand opening of its new building in June and nearly 15,000 visitors in 2025\. The center sells art from more than 300 Native artists and hosts the Red Cloud Indian Art Show. She graduated from Maȟpíya Lúta in 2017 but came back regularly to work as an intern while going to college in Minnesota. She was a spoken word poet while at Maȟpíya Lúta and participated in the Young Writers' Society, which was administered through the Heritage Center. It was that experience that introduced her to a Native anthropologist and got her interested in cultural preservation. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cb/ab/cbabab5e-2dc6-462c-94a0-b72956c0d224/content/images/2026/11/1A3A5078.jpg) Araceli Spotted Thunder, a 2017 Maȟpíya Lúta graduate, stands in front of the Čhantkú Arts Center at the school, where she now works as the gift shop manager. (Photo provided by Maȟpíya Lúta) She's now getting her degree in Lakota studies at Oglala Lakota College, with an emphasis in tourism and cultural studies, and is one of many alumni who came back to Maȟpíya Lúta not as a teacher but to support the school in other ways. "I kind of fell into this position, and I didn't really mean to. But being here and being able to help other other artists here tell their stories ... I had seen myself wanting to do that, but I didn't think that I would end up here," Spotted Thunder said. "I had just started as an intern. I only thought I would be here for the summer, for just that summer of 2023, and it's been about three years now." Molly Wetsch is a Report for America corps member who writes about rural and Native American issues for South Dakota News Watch. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep Molly writing stories like this one. Please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today. Thank you! [Donate ](https://www.sdnewswatch.org/donate/) Raven Gray Ghost Dog graduated from Maȟpíya Lúta in 2011 and then moved to Oklahoma to get her bachelor's degree. Then, it was on to the University of North Dakota, where she received a doctorate degree in education. Now, she serves as the vice president of advancement for the school, where she works with donors and funding partners. Much like Spotted Thunder, Gray Ghost Dog's return to Maȟpíya Lúta wasn't on purpose. Rather, she hoped to come back to Pine Ridge because of a deep connection to where she was raised. But the school played a crucial role in allowing her to stay on Pine Ridge, providing her with a well-paying job and an opportunity to continue working with her community. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cb/ab/cbabab5e-2dc6-462c-94a0-b72956c0d224/content/images/2026/11/2S8A7264-1.jpg) Amanda Carlow, a Maȟpíya Lúta graduate who now teaches Lakota language at the school, receives a star quilt for earning a higher education degree in Pine Ridge, S.D. (Photo: Provided by Maȟpíya Lúta) "My goal always has been to return to my community, no matter at what capacity. My whole goal in life was just to return and work here on the reservation and be with my people, and so that was the utmost goal. And then when I returned, I was interning that summer, and then I'd seen a position come open," Gray Ghost Dog said. "I was like, 'Hey, I kind of want to stick around,' because I love the environment here. I love the team that I work with. I started out as an admin assistant, and then I just decided to never leave." Spotted Thunder said that returning to Pine Ridge wasn't always part of her plan, but that time has allowed her to see the value of her work. "My grandpa very much was like, 'You need to go to college, get a business degree, get any internships outside of the outside of the Rez that you can,' Spotted Thunder said. "But my mom saw that I was very interested in learning more about our culture. She was like, 'Well, if you do end up coming home, you're home. Whatever opportunities are here, it's very little, but you will find something.' I guess I'm just now realizing that what she wanted for me did happen." ****Get free, fact-based South Dakota news and information** in a weekday email. No spam. Cancel any time. [Subscribe ](https://www.sdnewswatch.org/#/portal) Spotted Thunder and Gray-Ghost Dog echoed similar sentiments – that they stay in the community partially due to a desire to improve it. "Well, if I leave, then who else is gonna tell stories or who else is gonna help? I'm sure there are there are a lot of other people who can, but there's a human aspect to wanting to tell human stories," Spotted Thunder said. "It's something that I really love doing, and if I can help these artists get their stories out there then that makes me incredibly happy." Trista Merrival is the director of graduate success, where she helps Maȟpíya Lúta students plan their next steps. She also graduated from the school in 2016 and returned as a gym teacher after getting her college degree before taking on the graduate success role. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cb/ab/cbabab5e-2dc6-462c-94a0-b72956c0d224/content/images/2026/11/TMHeadshot1--1--2.jpg) Trista Merrival, director of graduate success at Maȟpíya Lúta and a 2016 graduate of the school. (Photo provided by Maȟpíya Lúta) She told News Watch that she sees alumni come back to Maȟpíya Lúta because they value the community that the school creates, which creates a natural desire to return. "A big part of it is the relationships we build in our years here. Our teachers and our staff are pretty good about getting to know our students beyond just their academics or their athletics. We get pretty close with the families here too," Merrival said. "It's just building that strong sense of connection and just wanting to give back to the place that helped shape who they are." ## Senior outreach key to students facing big changes, difficult conditions In May of this year, 46 students graduated from Maȟpíya Lúta High School; [98% of those students, according to Maȟpíya Lúta, planned to attend higher education institutions](https://mahpiyaluta.org/about-us/news-releases/honoring-the-ma%C8%9Fpiya-luta-high-school-class-of-2026/?ref=sdnewswatch.org). In 2001, graduation rates at the school were 19%. By 2009, those rates had skyrocketed to 91%. It's a remarkable feat for a school that sits in one of the most rural, impoverished regions in the country, where resources are scarce. [According to the U.S. Census Bureau](https://data.census.gov/profile/Pine%5FRidge%5FReservation,%5FSD--NE?g=2500000US2810&ref=sdnewswatch.org#populations-and-people), just 12.6% of people living on the Pine Ridge Reservation have a bachelor's degree or higher. But the [South Dakota Department of Education's annual report card](https://news.sd.gov/news?id=news%5Fkb%5Farticle%5Fview&sys%5Fid=7bcfca83979c575081bb3aa8c253af23&ref=sdnewswatch.org) also finds a reassuring data point: Native American students saw higher on-time graduation rates than their peers, at a 10% higher metric. Merrival said that when she works with students, she uses her own experience as an alumni who grew up on the reservation to relate to them. She said that being able to understand the unique challenges of growing up on Pine Ridge can help create deeper connections. "Not a lot of people consider the oppression and poverty of where we live. So I think me even just finishing my degree and being in this position is a big reminder. Like, 'You can do it, even though there are these barriers in the way.' I think it's easier for me to tell (the students), 'Hey, I've been there, done that,'" Merrival said. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cb/ab/cbabab5e-2dc6-462c-94a0-b72956c0d224/content/images/2026/11/2S8A8791.jpg) Adriano Rama, an AmeriCorps instructional staff member and 2023 graduate of Maȟpíya Lúta, works with elementary students at the school in Pine Ridge, S.D. (Photo provided by Maȟpíya Lúta) Maȟpíya Lúta credits much of the exponential growth in graduation rates to the work of the graduate success department. The high rate of further education, Merrival said, could be because students see people every day who were once in their shoes and know that they, too, can succeed beyond high school. "I think a lot of it has to do with not only just our alumni working here, but they see a lot of our alumni come back," Merrival said. "I invite alumni to come speak at our morning meetings and our study halls, just talking about their path to success, so I can show the high schoolers that there's many different paths to success, they all don't look the same and everybody's is going to look different from each other's." [SD Native Tourism Alliance to support entrepreneurs"I believe that it is an act of sovereignty for a tribe to take control of their cultural history by telling their own story."![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cb/ab/cbabab5e-2dc6-462c-94a0-b72956c0d224/content/images/icon/SDNW-Logo-Vertical-5b695d57-0c93-4b47-a289-b245c361ce6c.jpg)South Dakota News WatchJackie Hendry![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cb/ab/cbabab5e-2dc6-462c-94a0-b72956c0d224/content/images/thumbnail/TamaraJackie-1-1-dbb0ac21-5c3d-405d-912e-c6d3679e2d33.png)](https://www.sdnewswatch.org/south-dakota-native-american-tourism-alliance-pine-ridge/) Gray-Ghost Dog experienced firsthand the impacts of the graduate success department when she attended the school and said that she credits much of her current skillset – and how she approaches her work – to her time as a student at Maȟpíya Lúta. "I always try to be encouraging in my leadership. I always try to be patient and just always help the next generation," Gray-Ghost Dog said. "Being here at this institution and going through the schooling, you feel that. From your teachers to the counselors, that type of feeling, and so it helps you build your leadership, to what you want to be to encourage the next generation." [Share your thoughts on this story](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScdTmGFf24Uhwiwd%5FndSxHkv6oBGSAy1LxF9BbwRbhBK5KflA/viewform?usp=sf%5Flink&ref=sdnewswatch.org) **South Dakota News Watch* is an independent nonprofit. *Read*, *subscribe* for free and *donate* at* [*sdnewswatch.org*](http://sdnewswatch.org/?ref=sdnewswatch.org)*. *Contact* reporter/*[*Report for America*](https://www.reportforamerica.org/?ref=sdnewswatch.org) *corps member Molly Wetsch: 605-531-7382/*[*molly.wetsch@sdnewswatch.org*](mailto:molly.wetsch@sdnewswatch.org)*.*