- Details
- By Native News Online Staff
The latest Tribal College Blanket Design, Drum Keepers, is now for sale.
For more than 20 years, the American Indian College Fund has teamed up with Pendleton Woolen Mills’ to raise funds for annual Native students scholarships. During the past two decades, more than $2.5 million have been raised.
This year's winner Drum Keepers was designed by Trey Blackhawk (Winnebago), a graduate of Little Priest Tribal College with a degree in liberal arts who is currently working on an applied sciences degree.
Drum Keepers was selected from 59 submissions. As the winning designer, Blackhawk will receive a $5,000 scholarship, $2,000 for books and incidentals, and six blankets for his design portfolio. Troy Tso (Navajo) and Cydnee Shangreaux (Oglala Sioux) placed second and third in the contest respectively. Tso’s Directions Home blanket earned him a $2,500 scholarship and $500 cash prize. Shangreaux’s Morning Storm crib blanket design won her a $1,500 scholarship and $250 cash prize.
“I want to keep the songs alive that have been sung for many generations in our tribe. There are not many of us that sing, and I wanted to be a part of that percentage that carries on the knowledge of these songs we sing. I tell the younger generation to start learning how to sing and know these songs, as these songs make us who we are,” Blackhawk said.
Traditional songs were the inspiration for Blackhawk’s design Drum Keepers, which he said holds meaning for all tribes, as each uses the drum in some way. He wondered how the traditional songs of each community had been preserved and passed down, and wanted to create a piece that reflected the importance of the drum that gives life to the traditional songs that are sung.
The design includes 12 tipis for the 12 clans of the Winnebago. The color of the design shows both day and night to signify those who hold knowledge keep the memory of them forever. The Ho-chunk applique on the outside of the tipis, which is a popular applique for dancers’ regalia, signifies the women of the tribe. Blackhawk said the women are important knowledge-keepers of certain songs, and the memory of singing Winnebago songs with his grandmother one last time before she stopped due to cancer was on his mind when working on this design.
“This design holds valuable meaning to every tribe but more importantly to me,” Blackhawk explained. His lived experiences and culture are certainly clear throughout. Among the other elements tied to his identity are the drumsticks, which he designed based on an image of a drumstick he owns.
More Stories Like This
Navajo Nation Speaker Curley and Council Delegate Dr. Nez Join Education Leaders to Address Federal Budget CutsMackie Moore (Cherokee) Named Interim President of Haskell Indian Nations University
Mohawk Students File Legal Suit Over Changes Impacting Access to Federal Financial Aid
Trump Administration Proposes Deep Cuts to Tribal College Funding, Threatening Their Survival
USU Researchers Find Relationship Building, Local Cultural Knowledge Key for Indigenous Learners
Help us tell the stories that could save Native languages and food traditions
At a critical moment for Indian Country, Native News Online is embarking on our most ambitious reporting project yet: "Cultivating Culture," a three-year investigation into two forces shaping Native community survival—food sovereignty and language revitalization.
The devastating impact of COVID-19 accelerated the loss of Native elders and with them, irreplaceable cultural knowledge. Yet across tribal communities, innovative leaders are fighting back, reclaiming traditional food systems and breathing new life into Native languages. These aren't just cultural preservation efforts—they're powerful pathways to community health, healing, and resilience.
Our dedicated reporting team will spend three years documenting these stories through on-the-ground reporting in 18 tribal communities, producing over 200 in-depth stories, 18 podcast episodes, and multimedia content that amplifies Indigenous voices. We'll show policymakers, funders, and allies how cultural restoration directly impacts physical and mental wellness while celebrating successful models of sovereignty and self-determination.
This isn't corporate media parachuting into Indian Country for a quick story. This is sustained, relationship-based journalism by Native reporters who understand these communities. It's "Warrior Journalism"—fearless reporting that serves the 5.5 million readers who depend on us for news that mainstream media often ignores.
We need your help right now. While we've secured partial funding, we're still $450,000 short of our three-year budget. Our immediate goal is $25,000 this month to keep this critical work moving forward—funding reporter salaries, travel to remote communities, photography, and the deep reporting these stories deserve.
Every dollar directly supports Indigenous journalists telling Indigenous stories. Whether it's $5 or $50, your contribution ensures these vital narratives of resilience, innovation, and hope don't disappear into silence.
The stakes couldn't be higher. Native languages are being lost at an alarming rate. Food insecurity plagues many tribal communities. But solutions are emerging, and these stories need to be told.
Support independent Native journalism. Fund the stories that matter.
Levi Rickert (Potawatomi), Editor & Publisher
