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Success Stories

A mother and three daughters pose around a dining room table. There are lace curtains and blue wall in the background and some dishes on the table in the foreground.

“This is Home” – A Family Finds Their Forever Home in Calais, Maine

One of the first rooms Heather Gagne and her daughters began redecorating in their new home is the dining room, shown in the top photo. They have been busy repainting and making other updates. Raising a family in coastal Machias, Maine may sound lovely, but for Heather Gagne recent years proved stressful. There were few housing options in the Downeast community, and Heather was glad to find a rental home to…
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Use the filters below to find additional stories about how our programs have helped rural communities across the nation.

Search Results: 30 Stories
Pine Ridge Lift Station

Reliable Infrastructure Provided to the Pine Ridge Community

Pine Ridge is the most populous community in Oglala Lakota County, SD with a population of 3,308. It is located inside the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and is the tribal headquarters for the Oglala Sioux Tribe. The lift station in Pine Ridge was in very poor condition with… [Read More]
South Dakota
GrantsInfrastructureTribalWastewaterWater
North wing addition.

Campus Addition for Classroom and Community Cultural Space

The Nebraska Indian Community College (NICC), a federal land grant institution since 1994, serves two tribal nations: the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska at the Macy Campus and the Santee Sioux Nation at the Santee Campus. A third campus site is located in South Sioux City. NICC’s… [Read More]
Nebraska
Community CollegesGrantsTribal
woman standing beside new shower in bathroom

Investing in Safe, Affordable Housing on a South Dakota Reservation

Biological needs – sleep, food, water, air, shelter - form the base as they are of the greatest importance in maintaining life. Once a person has met the biological needs, the next concern is safety. In one of the poorest counties in the nation, Buffalo County, USDA Rural… [Read More]
South Dakota
GrantsHomeownershipTribal
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation sign

It's All About the Connections

In rural South Dakota, tribal members often lack access to higher education courses and facilities.  Students living on the 1,900-square-mile Rosebud Indian Reservation and the 11,000-square-mile Oglala Lakota Sioux Indian Reservation, for instance, struggle to travel long… [Read More]
South Dakota
EducationTribal
New Classroom.

New Classrooms at College Help Meet Demand for Higher Education

Little Priest Tribal College in Winnebago, Nebraska, is experiencing continued growth in student enrollment which stands at 768 students for all campuses. This is a 40% increase and the trend is expected to continue as the college pursues a robust recruiting and public relations… [Read More]
Nebraska
Community CollegesCommunity FacilitiesGrantsTribal
Photo of Zuni Housing Authority building and sign out front.

New Homes Dedicated at Zuni Pueblo New Mexico

USDA Rural Housing Service Administrator Tony Hernandez joined State Director Terry Brunner to dedicate three homes at Zuni Pueblo and three apartment complexes in Gallup as part of National Homeownership Month celebrations. “Throughout my travels, I’ve seen how rural… [Read More]
New Mexico
GrantsHomeownershipHousingTribal

Oglala Lakota College Administers Educational Opportunities With Support from USDA

Schools in South Dakota play a vital role in educating and preparing future generations for postsecondary education and careers.  An expansion of the educational outcomes for American Indian students across the state focuses on Tribal Colleges.  Providing necessary and… [Read More]
South Dakota
EducationTribal
Oglala Lakota College Success Story

Oglala Lakota College Partners with USDA Rural Development to Deliver Services

Oglala Lakota College (OLC) partnered with  USDA Rural Development in 2015 to enhance program accessibility in underserved rural areas and communities.  Through a coordinated effort, workshops were held in three reservation communities to provide information and… [Read More]
South Dakota
EducationTribal
Red Cloud Indian School

Our Lady of Lourdes Provides Foundational Skills and Oh So Much More

It was a special day for the students at the Our Lady of Lourdes, OLL, K- 8th grade school in Porcupine, SD as it was their last day before Thanksgiving break and many of their parents had joined them for lunch.  It was fun to see the students excited about the holidays and… [Read More]
South Dakota
EducationTribal
Sherry Morgan Event Group Photo

Crow Creek Sioux Tribe Reservation Member Becomes First Time Homeowner

Sherry Louise Morgan is an enrolled member of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe. She has worked hard for two years to obtain her dream of not only homeownership  but to complete this dream on her mom and dad’s leased land where she lived as a young girl. In recognizing… [Read More]
South Dakota
HomeownershipHousingTribal

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