June 2022 – Graduate

Clementine Bordeaux (Sičáŋǧu Oglála Lakóta) – Rosebud Sioux Tribe of the Rosebud Indian Reservation
Pine Ridge, SD
BIE Loan For Service
School: University of California 
Degree: Culture and Performance
GPA: 3.9 

I am a doctoral candidate in the World Arts and Cultures Department at the University of California, Los Angeles. I received a master’s degree from the University of Washington, Seattle, through the Native Voices Indigenous Documentary Film Program and an undergraduate degree in Theatre from Carthage College. I sit on the Board for Cornerstone Theatre Company (LA) and am a collaborator for Racing Magpie arts consulting organization in South Dakota. My research interests include: Lakota ontology, Indigenous feminisms, Indigenous representation, visual anthropology, digital/new media, and community-based participatory research. I was raised by elementary school educators on the Pine Ridge Reservation, and I have always had a keen interest in the ways Indigenous people are represented in the classroom and in public spaces. Throughout my graduate career, I have received support from Native Forward Scholars Fund, first at the University of Washington and recently, at the University of California. Native Forward has empowered me to be a dedicated student because I have not had to financially hustle to pay for tuition, books, or work odd jobs in order to stay focused on my education. A Native Forward scholar means that I am upholding a long legacy of Lakota intellectual traditions that existed well before a western educational system and will exist long after my experience as a current student. I am proud to be supported by organizations like Native Forward and continue to hold myself accountable because of their support.