SILVER CITY, NM – Marilyn Tafoya was not sure what she wanted to study when she first transferred to WNMU from San Juan College; she just felt the university was a good choice for her. "I wanted to pick a school with many online options, and of course, affordability was important. WNMU stood out to me as being a good option," she said.

Tafoya, who is Jicarilla Apache, Kiowa and Cheyenne and lives in northern New Mexico, at first thought she might focus on the natural sciences. "I really like the field of science, but I am a former high school drop-out," she explained, "so it was a bit challenging for me to have to learn all of that—especially in chemistry, as that felt like a whole new alien language."

When she started taking psychology classes, she knew she had found the right fit. "I would like to try to become a mental health counselor," she said. "Coming from the reservation community, I see a lot of unhealthy family dynamics, personal life dynamics and just a lot of traumatic events that have happened in families." Like many Native American peoples, the Jicarilla have experienced the generational trauma caused by colonization, relocation, broken treaties and cultural dispossession.

Tafoya added, "I have lived through a whole bunch of [these dynamics] myself, but I have been in mental health counseling for over a year, and I feel like it has done wonders for me. I would like to be able to help others with that as well."

For now, Tafoya is taking classes on a part-time basis, homeschooling her son, and serving as vice-president of the Native American Student Alliance. She acknowledges that it can be challenging being a nontraditional, online student, but she is determined to succeed. "If I had a key word, I would use the term resilient," said Tafoya. "I have come across many challenges and my own personal failures, but I have always just worked through my obstacles and stayed in school."

That kind of resilience is especially important for Indigenous students, said Tafoya. "I think it is important for other Native students to know that you do not have to be the hardest working person who never stumbles," she said. "I do see that quality in many students where they have a lot of discipline, but they also have a strong support system. Many of us are coming from a single-parent home, poverty, and unhealthy life dynamics, but you can still blaze your own path and never give up. Higher education is probably one of the best things you can ever give yourself."

"It is great if you are a person that gets good grades and are on top of your work," added Tafoya, "but you can also do it even if you struggle. It is not out of reach for anybody."