Sandy Packo of the American Indian College Fund Named a First Peoples Fund Fellow

Sandy Packo (Iñupiaq), the college readiness program administrator at the American Indian College Fund, was named an inaugural education fellow for the First Peoples Fund’s We the Peoples Before 25^th Anniversary Celebration of Native Cultural Expression and Sovereignty event. Scheduled for February 3-6, 2022, at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, the celebration will feature performances, workshops, film screenings, cooking demonstrations, and discussions. It will also include a multi-disciplinary performance in the prestigious Eisenhower Theater.

Emmy Her Many Horses (Sicangu/Oglala Lakota), program manager of special initiatives at the First Peoples Fund, said the idea for the fellowships came about when the organization was looking for a way to share artists’ work from the We the Peoples Before events widely. “We wanted people to have the opportunity to interact with Indigenous peoples and communities who might not otherwise have had that chance. We thought, ‘What better way to do so that with schools and educators?’”

Fellows were chosen by looking at the gaps in where and how Indigenous youth learn about Indigenous people. The fellows come from a diverse group of educators who represent communities in the lower 48 as well as “the histories and knowledge of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities,” Her Many Horses said.

Packo, a lifelong educator, has worked for ten years as a music teacher in Colorado and Oregon, where she currently resides while working remotely for the College Fund. She also has experience as a culture bearer working at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in her hometown of Anchorage.

Shortly before joining the College Fund, Packo said she examined her career and asked herself what she really wanted to do. She knew at a young age she wanted to go into the education field but narrowing down the subject she wanted to teach was difficult; she liked writing, music, and science. “Music won out and that is what my degree is in,” she said. While studying for her Master of Arts degree in teaching at the University of Alaska-Anchorage, her interests continued to expand. The College of Education recognized her for excellence in diversity, equity, and inclusion, and she began to pursue work in the subject further during her 10-year career as a teacher. From this, a new calling was born, one which would eventually lead her to the College Fund. In her new role, she is interested in ways educators can increase visibility for Native students and help them feel included in the classroom, which is inspired by her own experiences as a student when she sometimes felt undervalued and underestimated by some of her own teachers.

Like many people during the pandemic, Packo began to examine her career and explore whether she was applying her skills in the best way while also considering what she really wanted and how she could best make an impact. “For many years I had the desire to come back and serve the American Indian and Alaska Native community, and I have long wanted to be a culture-bearer and connect my experience with that second calling. I looked for a new career that was both a good fit and where I could be true to myself.” She mused it was COVID that pushed her to take a leap of faith. She applied for the position at the College Fund around the same time she applied for the fellowship. She was chosen for both.

Packo hopes to make a lasting impact on Native and non-Native students in K-12 classrooms who have a wide level of experiences learning about Indigenous histories and peoples in America. “All kids should have a chance to expand their understanding of the world around them. The world is a big place! The more experiences they have will help us as a nation move past objectifying Indigenous people… The project also offers Native students a chance to feel visible, to learn about their own communities, and to develop a sense of belonging and a chance to visualize leadership roles and careers for themselves…I hope that it brings healing.”