SALT LAKE CITY — While Saturday's football game against BYU is the big focus on the University of Utah campus this week, another sporting event carries even more meaning for several of the Native American students on campus during Native American Heritage Month.
It's called Lanes of Learning, where students bowl alongside the university's Elder-in-Residence to build "relationships and learning through stories, experiences, and mentorship," the school shared.
The students may come mainly from small towns on or near reservations in places like Arizona, Colorado and Utah, but chose the University of Utah because of its strong Indigenous community.
"I wasn't sure where I was going to go. And then the native excellence team, they kind of like made it feel like home, made it feel welcoming, and that kind of drew me in," said freshman Devinity Tauaalo.
Another first-year student, Lance Baker, described the close bonds he's formed on campus.
"I like finding your family here; it's pretty easy. I connected with these guys in the first couple weeks, and they're like my brothers and sisters right now," Baker said.
The university has made a concerted effort to foster that atmosphere for the now nearly 200 students who identify as Native American.
"To be able to bring culture and tradition to enlighten the students here, along with the community about the Ute nation," Joy Grant Bullethead said.
An avid bowler, it was Grant Bullethead's idea to hold the informal event at the student union alley.
"You put the pressure on me!" Grant Bullethead said.
She knows real pressure can be feeling like a stranger in a strange place while finding your way and earning a degree.
"I'm really happy that a school has recognized the tribe and really relate to what Ute means to the Ute people, our people," said Bullethead.
For junior architecture student Tefler Holiday, the community has been a welcome part of the college experience.
"...we're all really tight-knit," he said, "and it's a really great place to be if you're trying to feel that home away from home."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.