11 Winona State students from the Mass Communication department experienced a trip of a lifetime last May as they took on the sixth year of the Navajo Oral History Project. The project dives deep into the study of journalism as they gain a deeper insight on the Navajo Culture. The small group traveled to the Navajo Nation, where they joined other students from Diné College of the Navajo Nation to explore the world of journalism and culture. “Never take anything for granted was the biggest takeaway I gained on the Navajo trip,” said Kacie Mann. “The Navajos are so humble. This trip was really an eye opening experience.” Kacie Mann and Ben Strand let Her Campus in on what this trip of a lifetime was all about.
Photo by Taylor Nyman
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HC: What is the Navajo Oral History Project all about?
KM: The trip focuses on many things, such as learning and practicing mass communication, specifically journalism skills. These skills include: one on one interviewing techniques, film producing, video and audio editing as well as the idea behind collaboration work with other students both within and outside our westernized culture. Alongside the mass communication and journalistic practices, we as Winona State Students were asked to not only focus on, but immerse ourselves into the Navajo Culture and history itself. We had the special opportunity to be invited onto their beloved reservation and were taught the proper etiquette to fully experience their lifestyle. We were there to have fun but also to preserve the life history of the chosen Navajo Elders through oral history and film.
HC: How long did the trip last?KM: We had one week of preparation before we actually began the trip. We were on the trip for just short of 3 weeks, but the work didn’t stop after the trip. Our groups, along with the help of our professors, worked for several weeks following the trip to complete the final film documentaries.
HC: What was the biggest takeaway you gained from the trip?KM: Though I learned a lot about journalism, the biggest takeaway that I had would be the life lessons I learned from the Diné college students. They were just as eager to teach us about their culture, as we were to learn about it. They taught me to never take anything for granted. The Navajos have incredible work ethic and are so humble about everything they have and do. It’s really eye opening.
BS: That you don’t need to travel out of the country to experience a culture much different than the one we are used to seeing every day. They’re right in our own backyard of our own country, if you know the right places to look and go. That even though we are people of different cultures, we experience basic human emotions on the same level, just through different points of view. Which is quite awesome and intriguing to me.
HC: What does it mean to you, or what benefits came from it in your eyes?
BS: It’s one of the best learning experiences I have had. You learn so much more than just about journalism, photography, and video work. You learn how to work with other people, more specifically, people of another culture. You learn how to step out of your own shoes and take an extensive walk through a culture that is much different than Western society and it really changes how you see the world and interact with other people.
HC: Explain an average day you encountered while on the trip.
KM: Each day was different but the days that we didn’t have interviews with our elders scheduled, we went to class at 8 a.m. and learned about the culture, discussed our elders and their families and what are the best ways to effectively tell their stories. On the weekends, we had the opportunity to go sightseeing to famous ruins and overlooks as well as hiking, meeting more Navajo elders and playing disc golf on campus!
Photo submitted by Ben Strand
HC: What was your favorite part about the project itself?
BS: Learning to work with a group of people, most of which that you have never collaborated with before. But also, just being able to experience a new culture. On a less serious note, I really enjoyed learning about photography. I’m a writer and love writing – learning about photography was like learning about writing and how to write all over, just learning how to think a little differently – through a lens rather than pen and paper. Honestly, I found a new hobby, and it’s always a good thing when a person discovers a new passion or hobby.
HC: What were filming days like?
KM: Interview days were a lot different. We had four groups all working on a different documentary, so we had to split up and drive to our specific elders houses. Some elders lived about 40 minutes away but in my case my elder, Bill Toledo, lived two and a half hours away in Grants, New Mexico! I remember one day my group, including drive time and everything else, lasted over 12 hours. So after interview days we were usually pretty exhausted and took the evening to hang out all together by the bonfire near our dorm room. By 11 p.m. we were all usually in bed and then up the next day before 8 am.
HC: With the trip ending within the next two years, what advice do you have for those who were thinking about taking on the adventure?
BS: Go on the trip. Period. Monetary issues and such can be dealt with, and the experience and insight you gain far surpasses any monetary value placed on the trip. The land and culture down in Arizona/New Mexico is absolutely beautiful, and the people you meet are even better. Even though you are only down there for 3 weeks, the relationships you built with the elders and peers are priceless, and it feels like you’ll have known them for a lifetime. On top of that, you gain experience for the real and professional world well past what you could possibly expect. You are working on something every day the entire time down there. Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of time for fun and relaxation, but you also do your fair share of dedicated and hard work that can’t be matched. It’s more worth it than one’s mind could ever anticipate.
HC: Would you do it all over again if you could?
KM: Yes in a heartbeat (and if my bank account can handle it after graduation). It was so worth it and the people that we had the privilege to meet were so welcoming!  I’m actually heading back September 13th with some of the group to debut our projects to the elders and their families, as well as the students fromm the college! I can’t wait!
BS: I would absolutely do it again. Maybe not as a student, but as an alumnus/consultant who helps out and offers insight and background experience when it is needed. There was a lot of that with us on this trip this year, and it would not have been the same experience without them. Josh Averbeck, Skyler Ogren, Chops Hancock, Robbie Christiano, Grier, Miranda Haskie – all of them were/are very capable teachers and mentors and they work hard to make this trip the awesomeness that it is. Not to mention, everyone from WSU you go on the trip with, you build a special and lasting bond with them – Diné students and colleagues, as well.
The 2015 Navajo Oral History Project will premiere its 20-minute documentary films of four Navajo Elders on September 10th @ 5 p.m. in the SLC auditorium! Students from WSU and Diné College in Tsaile, Ariz. partnered together to create the films. Light refreshments will be served before the premiere.