Los Alamos schools honor Native American seniors with sash ceremony
Ten Native American seniors received handwoven sashes at Los Alamos High School, a ceremony that tied graduation to heritage, family and belonging.
Ten Los Alamos High School seniors stepped into graduation season with more than caps and gowns. At the school’s eighth annual Native American sash ceremony, Los Alamos Public Schools recognized students whose achievement was framed as both academic and cultural, with family members, tribal representatives, staff and other dignitaries filling the room ahead of commencement.
The Class of 2026 sash recipients were Abegail Brown, Diné; Hailey Duran, Pueblo of Tesuque; Liliana Griego, Pueblo of Nambé; James Gurule, Pueblo of Santa Clara; Graeme Martinez, Pueblo of San Ildefonso; Laila Muller, Pueblo of Nambé; Steven Romero, Pueblo of Tesuque; River Sheppard, Penobscot Nation, Diné, Mi’kmaq, ’Malecite and Hopi; Alessandra Valencia, Pueblo of Pojoaque; and Hannah Waldschmidt, Pueblo of Ysleta del Sur. Each student received a handwoven sash created by Santa Clara Pueblo and Jicarilla Apache weaver Cris Velarde, who has designed the Los Alamos High School sashes since 2019.
The ceremony mixed celebration with continuity. The Tewa Dancers from the North performed, and tribal leaders added remarks as the students were honored before their graduation at Sullivan Field on May 23. Gates for the Class of 2026 ceremony opened at 8 a.m., and no tickets were required. For a school district with Native students from many tribal backgrounds, the sash ceremony functioned as a visible acknowledgment that graduation is not only about individual achievement, but also about the people and traditions that made that achievement possible.
Jovita Mowrer, with Native American Student Support, helped plan the event and underscored that success in this setting is collective, not solitary. That message has shaped a ceremony that grew from family leadership and student advocacy, including Leah Mountain, who helped establish the tradition at LAHS. The event drew more than 85 family members and friends in 2023, when it was described as the fifth year of the tradition, and it recognized ten seniors again in 2024, by then the sixth year.
The ceremony also fits into a broader policy and program landscape. New Mexico’s Tribal Regalia law, SB 163, signed in 2025, protects Native students’ right to wear regalia at graduation and other school events. And a 2025 Los Alamos Public Schools Native American Student Support page said 126 Native American students call the district home, alongside cultural programming that has included artist demonstrations, hoop dancing, singers, drummers and author visits. In Los Alamos, the sash ceremony has become a yearly reminder that representation is not ceremonial alone, but part of how schools define belonging.
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