On Saturday, May 9, forty-six seniors crossed the commencement stage at Maȟpíya Lúta High School, surrounded by proud families, friends, teachers, and community members. Under beautiful sunny skies, the Class of 2026 celebrated a milestone years in the making.
This year’s graduating class demonstrated not only academic achievement, but also resilience, leadership, athletic excellence, and deep commitment to culture and community.
Congratulations to Valedictorian Ashlan Carlow-Blount and co-Salutatorians Trey Pilcher and Taiwo Ayedokun. In the fall, Ashlan will attend the University of South Dakota on a full-ride scholarship to study Environmental Science. Taiwo will also attend USD, where she plans to study Pre-Med with a path leading toward Cardiology, while Trey will continue his education at Haskell Indian Nations University to study Business.
Out of the 46 graduates, two students earned full-ride scholarships to their respective universities: Ashlan Carlow-Blount to USD and Caroline Frank to the University of Denver. In total, graduating seniors were awarded more than $100,000 in scholarships.
The Class of 2026 also leaves behind a remarkable athletic legacy. Eight seniors officially signed to compete at the collegiate level, with several more committed to continuing their athletic careers in college sports programs across the country.
Academically, the future is bright for this graduating class. Ninety-eight percent of graduates plan to attend a college, university, or technical school this fall. Students will begin the next chapter of their journeys at institutions including the University of South Dakota, University of Denver, Institute of American Indian Arts, South Dakota State University, Black Hills State University, University of Minnesota Morris, Chadron State College, Haskell Indian Nations University, and Mitchell Technical College, among others.
Graduates will pursue a wide range of fields including nursing, business, criminology, Native American studies, psychology, biology, and environmental science.
The ceremony also celebrated students’ dedication to Lakota language and culture. Eight graduating seniors earned the State of South Dakota Bilingual Seal on their diplomas, recognizing their proficiency in both English and the Lakota language. Additionally, 14 seniors were honored for spending their entire K–12 educational journey at Maȟpíya Lúta Owayawa.
In their commencement addresses, both Ashlan and Trey reflected honestly on hardship, perseverance, and hope. Trey spoke movingly about losing his father during high school and how that loss became motivation to continue pushing forward. He reminded his classmates and all in attendance that, “Times are always going to get hard, but we always need to look at the good in life.”
He also shared a message that captured the spirit of the Class of 2026 and a good reminder to all of us, “Success isn’t defined by a single destination. It’s shaped by your resilience, your character, and your willingness to keep moving forward.”
As the Class of 2026 begins this next chapter, we celebrate not only what they have accomplished but the leaders, relatives, athletes, scholars, and changemakers they are becoming. Wóphila tȟáŋka and congratulations to our graduates.