NEWS :: Red Cloud Indian School

Mongolian Ambassador visits Red Cloud Indian School, finds cultural-exchange and understanding
posted on October 27, 2009

Red Cloud Indian School welcomed a delegation from Mongolia to campus on Friday, October 23 as part of a unique cross-cultural exchange between the Mongolian Embassy in Washington, DC and the Oglala Sioux Tribe President’s Office.

“The Mongolian people—as well as the Lakota—share a common belief that we are all brothers,” said James F. Wagenlander, honorary counsel. “It is with this belief, and the desire to keep learning about all the people of the United States, that encouraged Ambassador Khasbazaryn Bekhbat to make this special visit to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.”

The Ambassador’s delegation included Second Secretary Sambuu Dawadash, members of the Mongolian Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, and the Ambassador’s wife, Jamsrangiin Gerelmaa. The group spent the day with administrators and staff of Red Cloud, discussing the differences between the Red Cloud and Mongolian education systems and learning more about the school’s Lakota language curriculum. Afterwards, the group visited The Heritage Center and made a last-minute decision to attend the Teca Wacipi Oklakiciye Powwow at the high school gym in hopes of understanding more about the Lakota culture.

“We were all very pleased with the strong academic programming happening at Red Cloud Indian School, and are terribly encouraged by the efforts of the Lakota Language Program that continues to promote the culture of such a fantastic people,” said Wagenlander.

During the Teca Wacipi Oklakiciye Powwow, members of the delegation were able to meet with students from across the reservation. The students shared stories of their different dancing styles.

The Mongolian delegation’s visit to the Pine Ridge Reservation also included a trip to the local Oglala Lakota College Center in Kyle, a dinner with Oglala Sioux Tribal Leaders at the Prairie Winds Casino, and a stop to the South Dakota Parks and Recreation Center.

“The whole trip definitely left an impression on the Ambassador and his wife,” said Wagenlander. “We are very grateful to have had this opportunity.”

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