Lori White Buffalo is a proud member of the Chickasaw Nation, an American Indian tribe with a geographic territory spanning 13 counties in south-central Oklahoma.
She currently lives in Pauls Valley but grew up in Sulphur, where she graduated from high school in 2013. Since she didn’t have college plans right away, she decided to apply for an entry level staff job at the local Chickasaw Cultural Center. “I found a true passion for my history and my culture,” she said, remembering the effect that decision had on her life.
White Buffalo rose through the organization over the next nine years, becoming cultural implementation manager for the Chikasha Himitta Inthanachi Program in 2022. She is now based at the Division of Chickasaw Education in Ada, providing heritage and cultural education services to many of the Nation’s young children.
She oversees a team that travels to childcare, preschool and Head Start sites promoting Chickasaw language and traditions. They offer history and language lessons along with activities highlighting traditional food and crafts. She also interacts with parents, and mentors youth who are receiving additional benefits.
White Buffalo and her staff developed the program together. She has enjoyed seeing it grow. “I love being able to reach out to the kids in my community and let them know that you can be proud to be First American, you can be proud to be Chickasaw,” she shared.
White Buffalo says her promotion to management happened after a supervisor recognized her leadership potential and encouraged her to go back to school for a bachelor’s degree. She liked the idea, but by that point she was married and had started a family, so she wasn’t sure at first how to make it happen.
“It was almost impossible for me to go back to school as a traditional student,” White Buffalo recalled. “But then when I found Southeastern, I was able to talk to some of the advisors there and they let me know that everything is strictly online.”
She enrolled in Southeastern Oklahoma State University’s online Bachelor of Arts in Communication with an Emphasis in Organizational & Strategic Communication program in 2019. The coursework was flexible enough to meet her needs and she was able to add a minor in Native Studies.
White Buffalo liked having the option to personalize her degree plan. She wanted a learning experience that would prepare her to make a greater impact in her community.
“If you’re truly passionate about what you’re [learning] and you’re able to connect that with your real-life job, that’s what makes the difference,” she said.
Building Support, Gaining Confidence
Although White Buffalo was excited about studying online at Southeastern, she says support from her advisor helped her get comfortable. It was a big decision and she had questions about everything from time management to finances.
“She calmed my nerves,” White Buffalo remembered, “[by saying] ‘We are going to help you every step of the way.'”
Scholarship funding from the Chickasaw Nation covered most of the degree costs, and support from her family, professors and classmates has allowed her to focus on school.
White Buffalo says her daughters have enjoyed taking more trips to the park with their dad, and that they play a little more quietly when they know she is working on assignments. The family celebrates her high grades together by going out for ice cream.
“This hasn’t just been my journey,” she emphasized. “They’ve been a part of this journey as well.”
Working closely with her instructors and taking advantage of online office hours is making her coursework go smoothly. “All my professors have been amazing,” she said. In addition to their consistent contact with students, White Buffalo is grateful for their kindness.
Like most working moms, her schedule is subject to change and she says that’s never been a problem. “Family comes up, family emergencies come up,” she explained. “They are very understanding.”
Her interactions with online classmates have been just as positive. She likes how students work through common issues together and she’s made some good friends in the program.
“When you have your peers that are there for you and there for each other, that also [gives] me a sense of security,” she said. “I can always count on them.”
Public speaking and presentation are two important skills that they’ve worked on together. During her second year in the program, White Buffalo showcased her progress in these areas by demonstrating one of her family traditions on an episode of the Chickasaw TV series Thrive. More recently, she has used that skillset to help secure funding for Chickasaw education initiatives.
Becoming a Leader and Making a Difference
White Buffalo says earning a promotion to management—even before graduating with her bachelor’s degree—was a meaningful event. The recognition validated her choice to go back to school and showed that her employer was confident in her skills. It also meant she had overcome a key obstacle in her path to becoming a supervisor.
“I was one of those that tried to avoid conflict in any way,” she admitted. “I would try to prevent it, but I’ve learned that conflict is always there.”
White Buffalo says studying communications at Southeastern empowered her to change her approach. She discovered strategies for handling difficult situations and performance conversations that she could use on the job.
“When you’re in a leadership role, it is up to you to take on that responsibility, to try to negotiate the team the best that you can,” she advised. “These classes have given me those skills and that knowledge.”
Looking back on her career, White Buffalo says she’s thankful for the opportunities she’s been given, as well as those she created for herself and those she serves.
“I thought I would be content where I was at, working at the Cultural Center, because I was still sharing our history and culture with patrons who wanted to come visit,” she said. “But I really wanted to make an impact on my community, because I did see a need for [educating kids] who were Chickasaw but had no idea what that meant to be Chickasaw.”
White Buffalo says developing the Chikasha Himitta Inthanachi Program was a transformative experience. “It’s almost hard to explain the feeling that you get, that gratification that you get because you’re making a difference in that child’s life,” she smiled.
Many people in her community who have also followed her journey at Southeastern now come to her with questions about pursuing higher education. She makes sure they know learning online is an option, and how much she has benefited from studying communications. “There are so many possibilities with this degree, it’s crazy!” she said with a laugh.
White Buffalo counsels other adults who are thinking about going back to school to be patient, have faith in themselves and look to the future. “I know it’s a lot to take on,” she acknowledged, “but the rewards at the end are almost unimaginable.”