The Power of Data in Uplifting Indigenous Voices - Meet Jesse Grey Eagle
My name is Jesse Grey Eagle, and I am a member of the Oglala Lakota Tribe. I am a Senior Analyst working in the marketing industry. Last year while working for a few nonprofits, I realized the power of data and how it can help solve many of the problems we were running into, so I began studying to get a Data Analytics Certificate.
I am also a father of two, husband, and avid hiker. I love playing chess and watching Marvel shows with my kids. (We never leave the Disney plus channel.)
What key moments defined you as a leader?
I have always worked my way up to a management position throughout my life and career. I would find myself in a leadership position outside of work as well. I tend to look at life with a “big picture” mindset and spend time strategizing and setting goals to achieve that big picture.
The critical moments in my life that I am proud of from leadership are the times I was able to step out of my comfort zone and go after my goals. Whether that was applying for jobs I wasn’t sure I was qualified for, presenting to a board room of directors, or boldly reaching out to indigenous leaders to collaborate on projects. You are never 100% comfortable in any of these situations. Still, the feeling of accomplishment you get from doing something you are scared of and seeing the positive impact that will come from it is worth every second of adrenaline-fueled anxiety you experience leading up to it.
What community-driven projects have you spearheaded/participated in that you are proud of? What did you take away from these experiences?
When I was younger, I worked at a group home facility for indigenous youth that recently spent time at a juvenile detention facility or a much more “locked down” situation. Throughout my time working there, I helped various kids develop coping skills they would hopefully use when they feel like they are about to lose control of their emotions. I was known as a “Fire Extinguisher” on my team. I would routinely switch the unit I was working in to go work in an “escalated unit” most of the time; I was able to get the escalated unit to calm back down and resolve whatever conflict arose.
Eventually, I worked my way up to managing my team, setting some team goals and standards. We created new de-escalation techniques that had more impact and a new “Positive Awareness Policy .”This new policy was set up so that the mental health tech workers could notice and praise positive behavior every time the opportunity presented itself. This fed the flames of keeping the positive behaviors going and made calling out negative behaviors something the patients wanted to avoid.
I know we could not help every patient we worked with, and some of the patients went right back into the circumstances that brought them to our facility in the first place. I hope we helped in some way, whether through coping skills, positive reinforcement or confidence building, or just giving them a person to listen to them.
I enjoyed working with our patients; I was fortunate to find myself working there at that time in my life that I was in. I was directionless, and this job gave me a sense of purpose that I did not have before. I developed a sense of fortitude, discipline, flexibility, and the ability to leave my ego at the door and consider the greater good when dealing with challenges.
A second project I am very proud of was my work with the Minnesota Indigenous Business Alliance and Pamela Standing. When you work for a Nonprofit, you find yourself working on various aspects of the organization you never knew you would be in. I worked closely with the Director of the organization. I understood their vision for the organization and the impact we wanted on Indigenous communities and people.
For instance, we worked on an online catalog and social media campaign to promote local indigenous artists and their work. The artisans ranged from woodworkers, beaders, and painters to clothing designers. We showcased their work, social media handles, contact info, and websites. From this campaign, we received a lot of positive feedback from the artists that they could generate new customers and inquiries, helping them stay in business while working on their passion projects.
We also promoted Native businesses by creating and sharing short bite-sized bios for indigenous companies through social media channels and the website (which had more in-depth information) to bring awareness to the various businesses and industries.
It was a pleasure to work with the different artists and business leaders on collaboration projects and other nonprofits, all to “buy local and buy indigenous .”To share educational materials on growing our Indigenous communities through a thriving economy. See what it means to buy local and how that leads to job growth and more business opportunities within Indigenous communities. The work was so inspiring.
How do you connect with your ancestral roots in your professional and personal life?
I connect in a few different ways. I burn sage and pray almost weekly. As I previously said, I am an avid hiker and find being out in nature a spiritual practice. I grew up participating in sweat lodges all my life (one of my earliest memories of being in a sweat lodge was when I was in a diaper on my dad’s lap and was trying to get him to stop singing for some reason, so I kept hitting him in the mouth, poor dad). I haven’t been to a sweat in a long time, but I want to find one soon. I also love teaching my kids about their culture and what it means. My daughter, who is in kindergarten, is obsessed with drawing Medicine Wheels, and it warms my heart to see it. Generations later, we are still here, and the culture is still alive and strong.
Professionally my connection is through resiliency. I have had challenges in my professional life, and I come back to how resilient and strong our people are, and I use that as motivation to persevere.
As an Indigenous leader, what motivates you to move forward in times of adversity? Where do you find your passion?
Again, I come back to resiliency. I think back to all the struggles and hardships our people went through during the colonization era and everything that followed, yet we remain standing. I love our culture and how it promotes community versus individuality. I encourage that by being a resource and support to those who want to positively impact our communities.
