Arizona Online Grad Forges Path Toward Service of Her Ancestral Lands
"I want to be able to protect and preserve this land for future generations because I have a deep connection to the land and to everything that comes with it – the values, the tradition, the language, the culture, the people, the animals, the water," said Shannon Taylor, who will graduate in May with a degree in geographical information systems technology. The work she's trained for, cartography, or the study and creation of maps, is in her view the modern extension of the White Mountain Apache's longstanding tradition as protectors of their homelands.
Kyle Mittan / U of A University Communications
Shannon Taylor's journey toward graduation is, in many ways, a story about her sense of place.
Taylor grew up on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, in Arizona's White Mountains, and that's where she's lived all her life. Growing up, she passed the time attending traditional ceremonies, fishing and generally exploring the outdoors with her family.
Those experiences ignited a passion that Taylor, who is White Mountain Apache and Navajo, aims to make a career out of.
Taylor will graduate from the University of Arizona in May with a Bachelor of Science in geographical information systems technology. The work she's trained for – cartography, or the study and creation of maps – is, in her view, the modern extension of the White Mountain Apache's longstanding tradition as protectors of their homelands.
"My ancestors, they fought for the land. They're the reasons we're still here, because they did not give up," said Taylor, who, as an Arizona Online student, completed her degree entirely from home. Her next chapter involves Arizona Online's Professional Science Master's program in resilience practice.
"I want to be able to protect and preserve this land for future generations because I have a deep connection to the land and to everything that comes with it – the values, the tradition, the language, the culture, the people, the animals, the water," Taylor added. "That's just something that I'm really passionate about."