A graduate of the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) and former employee of the American Indian College Fund, longtime friend of the Tribal College Movement John Gritts passed away this past fall. As a proud citizen of the Cherokee Nation, John honored his identity and experiences by being a lifelong advocate for Native higher education and tribal colleges. He credited his parents and grandparents for his own education, making it possible for him and his four brothers to go to school. John paid forward that education mindset for the entire­ty of his career to make it possible for countless thousands of Native students to attend college by helping them negotiate the complicated and sometimes confusing financial aid process.

A talented artist, John attended IAIA in Santa Fe, New Mexico, from 1966-1968. In 1973, he took a job in the financial aid office at Black Hills State College (BHSC). John also aided tribal colleges as they established their own financial aid programs, beginning his lifelong commitment to helping TCUs. At the time, Sinte Gleska College and Oglala Sioux Community College had not yet earned their accreditation, so he also worked with those institu­tions, traveling to their campuses and providing financial aid services.

John was an associate at BHSC for six years before his promotion as director of financial aid in 1980. He quickly gained a reputation as someone who could be trusted. At the time, there was political turmoil in South Dakota with the American Indian Movement’s occupation of Wounded Knee and later the arrest of Leonard Peltier. John was honored that BHSC took a chance by hiring him, noting, “They gave me an opportunity because I can communi­cate.” Once a rancher came to see him about financial aid for his daughter. John explained the process to the man and what she qualified for, and then said he looked forward to her being a stu­dent at Black Hills State. “Oh, she’s not going here. She’s going to South Dakota State,” the rancher said. John recalled, “I told him he should have spoken with the officer there, but he said he was told to talk to me because I would explain it better.”

John went on to work for the College Fund beginning in 1997. “I just thoroughly enjoyed that, hearing stories and hearing how trib­al colleges and universities were doing,” he once reflected. “To me they just keep moving to the next level. They’re cornerstones on the reservations . . . they do a wonderful job with educating their students.”

Pictured here with Lionel Bordeaux circa 1975, Gritts helped the nascent Sinte Gleska College and Oglala Sioux Community College negotiate the financial aid process.

In those early days at the College Fund, John shared a cramped office with many staffers, one phone line, and one email account. “We were always breaking circuits,” he recalled. In that close envi­ronment, he said, “You can’t help but learn. David Cournoyer taught me passion on behalf of what we do for students and our colleges. I will never forget our first gala—how touching it was to hear our students’ stories when they spoke. And it is great seeing the light come on with our students, whether they are young or middle-aged or old, and decide they need an education.”

After leaving the College Fund in 2006, he joined the staff at his alma mater, IAIA, as director of admissions, records, and enroll­ment, before moving on to the U.S. Department of Education in 2008 where he served as a management and program analyst for the department’s Federal Student Aid, Minority Serving and Under Resourced Schools Division. Shortly after accepting that position, he attended an American Indian Higher Education Consortium board meeting, took the podium and announced, “I am from the government . . . and I am here to help you,” where­upon the room erupted in laughter and applause from all in atten­dance, as TCU presidents had heard that line many times from federal workers.

Throughout his lifetime, John received numerous professional awards, including an honorary doctorate degree from Bacone College, the American Indian College Fund’s first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017 in recognition of his ongoing service in supporting and furthering the missions of tribal colleges and universities throughout his career, and the National Indian Education Association’s Elder of the Year Award in 2010.

“When I learned about the award, I was totally shocked,” John recalled. “When you are doing your job, you are not looking for these things. When you learn about tribal colleges and universi­ties, you can always be an advocate.”

Looking back on his career, he said, “I am going to say it was a fun life, and I say that in all good heart because I enjoyed my career.” He expanded on this, adding, “The best time, of course, is graduation, whether it was at Black Hills State or at a TCU. When the students walk across the stage and then say thank you; that is all it takes. You cry like a baby.”

John continued his commitment to education with his own family just as his grandparents and parents had done with him. He once noted that one of the things he was most proud of was that three of his sons went to tribal colleges and two graduated, adding, “And the one that didn’t, Trevour, the Creator took him home before he could graduate.”

After retirement, John continued his deep commitment to stu­dents and tribal communities by supporting the annual TCU con­ference at Salish Kootenai College, where tribal college educators and leaders gather to share, learn, and advocate for their profes­sional growth. Cheryl Crazy Bull, president of the College Fund and friend and colleague of John’s since the 1980s, said, “John’s legacy lives on. His good will, his humor, and his kindness are what we will all remember about him. We pray for his spirit to have a good journey and for strength for his family.”

Dina Horwedel, JD is the senior director of public education at the American Indian College Fund.