3 Takeaways:

• Nearly 100 graduates registered to be honored at the annual Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community Graduation Recognition Program.
• The awards dinner was held at the Talking Stick Resort Ballroom on June 25.
• Salt River Schools Native Language Culture Coordinator Ipa Dutchover served as master of ceremonies.

In the blink of an eye, the 2026 graduation season has officially come to an end in the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. 

To help celebrate all the graduates from the Community, the SRPMIC held its Graduation Recognition Program on June 25 at the Talking Stick Resort Ballroom. Salt River Schools Native Language Culture Coordinator Ipa Dutchover served as master of ceremonies.

The annual event honors graduating students from the school year. Whether students received their GED or a Ph.D. in business administration, the annual banquet celebrates their hard work and academic achievements. 

Kyland King, Salt River Schools Education Board chair, provided the invocation by asking for continued blessings to the graduates, their families, those in attendance and those who could not attend the ceremony. 

“I love that we live in a Community that supports prayer,” said Dutchover. 

Salt River Schools Superintendent Sheryl Houston provided the welcome message. “Tonight, we come together in celebration, not only in resilience, but in heritage and community. To the graduates, congratulations. Graduation is more than a ceremony; it is a rite of passage. It is a time to honor those who’ve walked before you with courage and to recognize your own powers.”

She continued, “What sets you apart from the others is the strength of your roots. Your culture, traditions, language and stories are not just beautiful, they are powerful. They carry wisdom that the world needs now more than ever.”

Before the awards were presented, everyone enjoyed dinner while country-music band Dirt Rhodes provided the entertainment. 

The Awards

Honored students received a framed certificate of achievement from Salt River Schools, which detailed their name, school and degree. A photo booth was set up outside of the ballroom for families and loved ones to take photos with their graduates. 

The Roxie Andrews Perseverance Award was presented to Rosemarie Antone, and the Higher Education Outstanding Graduate Award went to Courtney Wood. Additionally, Liliana Olmedo received the Higher Education Outstanding Undergraduate Award. 

Antone graduated from East Valley Academy. Wood graduated from A.T. Still University with her master’s degree in science, physician assistant studies. Olmedo earned a bachelor of science degree in aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. 

All three award-winning students were praised with a heartfelt speech outlining their accomplishments in their academic journey, followed by a rousing round of applause. Each also received a diamond-shaped plaque etched with their name and degree. 

Later, staff members from Salt River Schools and the Community Relations Office, Lorena Cashin and Davina Leon, read aloud nearly 100 registered names of this year’s graduating students from the Community. Each graduate in attendance was congratulated by SRPMIC President Martin Harvier, Council members and distinguished representatives from Salt River Schools. 

Harvier provided the closing remarks. “Growing up, my dad was very strict with us,” he began. His speech revealed that his father graduated from the old Phoenix Indian School in 1930. 

Harvier shared that his father instilled into him the importance of graduating from high school at an early age. “But I probably ditched [a] half-year of school [during] my freshman year,” Harvier admitted. He would soon reverse course and graduate from high school, saying that as he got older, he realized the importance of his father’s words about continuing education. 

“I’m so proud of you,” he said to the graduates. “I want you to look at your parents and thank them, because at some point, I know they encouraged you to be the best. For those that graduated from high school, I encourage you to keep going.” 

He concluded, “When you improve yourself, you improve your family. When you improve your family, you improve your Community. God bless you. Congratulations.”

As the banquet neared its end, SRPMIC Council member Michael Dallas Sr. recited the closing prayer and asked for protection and blessings to be given to the Community, the graduates and their families.