EDUCATOR KARA BOBROFF (Diné/Lakota) founded One Generation in 2020, an organization that encourages social change through Indigenous-led programs and partnerships. In 2006, she helped to establish the Native American Community Academy (NACA), in Albuquerque, and the NACA Inspired Schools Network. Bobroff has also served as the New Mexico Public Education Department’s deputy secretary of identity, equity, and transformation.
CRITICAL MOMENT. Adopted by a non-Native family in Albuquerque, Bobroff didn’t see many Indigenous role models growing up. In response, she founded the NACA charter school to serve Native youth by preserving language, culture, and land-based learning practices. “I want them to know their identity, language, culture, and selves as holistically as possible,” she says.
DOING THE WORK. A former special education teacher and school administrator, Bobroff was known to serve students lunch and clean the bathrooms at the schools where she taught. “I’ve learned as a leader that you’re responsible,” she says. “Others are looking to you to live your values.”
SHINING BRIGHT. Bobroff recalls a valuable gift she received from a young student’s grandfather while working as a principal on the Navajo Nation. “He gave me a gift of a crystal, explaining that there are different sides to it, each with a different perspective,” she says. “Any time I’m thinking of something big or facing challenges, I look to people who can give perspectives that I don’t see.”
LEADING THE WAY. One Generation supports programs that use Indigenous practices and knowledge to create social change. “I imagine in 10 to 30 years, Indigenous values will be incorporated into everything–health and wellness, climate change, economic well-
being,” she says.