‘Building a Better World for Future Generations’

 

POSTED ON May 08, 2024

 

In 2022, Secretary of the Department of Interior, Deb Haaland, addressed the graduating class of Haskell Indian Nations University in their first in-person commencement ceremony in two years.

Haaland stated that Haskell provides a unique opportunity to learn, as students receive a culturally relevant education that enables them to stand up for Indigenous communities wherever their paths take them.

Haaland encouraged the graduates to utilize their education to build a better world for future generations and those whose voices are often silenced.

This year, William “Billy” Mills, an alumnus of Haskell University, was invited to deliver the 2024 Commencement address.

The event was attended by Lawrence Public Schools Superintendent Anthony Lewis, 1964 Olympic Gold Medalist Billy Mills, Zeke Rupnick, chair of the Prairie Band Potawatomi tribe, school board member Carole Cadue-Blackwood, Steve Cadue, former chair of the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas, and Patricia Mills.

Billy Mills is the subject of the 1983 movie “Running Brave” and remains the only American male to win a gold medal in the 10,000-meter run.

He was inducted into the U.S. National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1976 and the United States Olympic Hall of Fame in 1984.

Mills was also a three-time NCAA All-America cross-country runner.

In recognition of his work with the Running Strong for American Indian Youth organization, Mills was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal in 2012.

In 2014, he was presented with the Theodore Roosevelt Award, the NCAA’s highest honor.

After completing his degree in physical education in 1962, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps as a first lieutenant in the Marine Corps Reserve. Mills competed in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics while serving in the Marine Corps Reserve.

On Friday, May 3, Haskell Indian Nations University recognized 129 spring and summer graduates during the university’s commencement ceremony.