As Mentor and Friend, Thornton Gives Native Kids the Information and Encouragement to Succeed
The tall, gray-haired man stands out among students at NayTahWaush Community Charter School. However, Dale Thornton is so much a part of the school he blends in, said Gayle Gish, director of the school on the White Earth reservation in northern Minnesota.
For over three years, Thornton has been a role model, mentor and tutor to kids at both NayTahWaush and the Bug-O-Nay-Ge-Shig tribal school near Cass Lake. Each week he tells 80 fifth through ninth graders about career options, self-esteem and goal setting. He brings them to colleges and universities, helps with homework, cheers at volleyball games and offers a listening ear.
Thornton’s goal is to encourage kids to finish high school and possibly pursue higher education, including the option of Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., where he is director of American Indian Outreach. Whether or not students attend Concordia, college administrators believe that everyone benefits if they succeed in school, said Thornton, who formerly worked in student financial aid at the college.
Thornton offers the vision of a future pursuing higher education, Gish said. “Kids need to start thinking very early about trying to set goals. It’s so far in the future and foreign to many of our families. We do have families that go to college, but not the majority. Our first goal is to get them to high school but then think further education, and he brings that to us.”
According to Thornton, “Adversity is often part of the lives of native kids. I think these students need all the encouragement that I can provide, that teachers can provide. Or, it might be grandpa and grandma that are encouraging. I’m just another adult who happens to know a little bit about education processes who cares about them.”
Encouragement is one reason Jamie, a ninth grader, returned to school this fall. An A-student and athlete, the teen became pregnant and had a baby last spring. Thornton knew it would be easy for her to drop out.
“I said, ‘Jaime, for the sake of your baby you must stay in school. If I don’t see you here, I’m going to come find you.’ I showed up the first day of school and there she was. She’s a special person who can succeed.”
Gaining trust and following through are important when working with native children, Thornton said, adding that adults shouldn’t make assumptions about kids because a second look can reveal a lot. “With the kids, sometimes it’s an act of faith, I guess,” he said “You’re unsure you’re reaching them and then every now and then something happens and you think, ‘Oh my gosh. They were listening.’”
