Menominee schools open regalia closets to support student participation

Two Keshena schools are trying to solve a practical problem that can keep children from fully taking part in cultural life: they are lending regalia. Keshena Primary School and the Menominee Tribal School have created closets where students can borrow ribbon skirts, shirts and other traditional clothing for powwows and cultural events, with KPS Princess Rylee Latender among those helping lead the effort.

The goal is straightforward. Regalia can be expensive, time-consuming to make and deeply personal, and that makes it harder for some families to send a child to the dance grounds fully prepared. By turning stored items into borrowable school resources, the closets lower the cost of participation while still respecting the traditions those garments carry. For students who want to enter the circle, that can mean the difference between standing on the sidelines and taking part in the songs, dances and public gatherings that help connect young people to Menominee identity.

The effort also fits a community where those gatherings are not occasional extras. The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin says its history begins at the mouth of the Menominee River, about 60 miles east of the present reservation, and its official culture page includes a Pow-Wow section. The 56th Annual Menominee Nation Pow Wow took place Aug. 2-4, 2024 at Woodland Bowl in Keshena, underscoring how central powwows remain to local life and how often families gather across generations around them.

The school system behind the closets is rooted in the same community geography. The Menominee Indian School District lists Keshena Primary School at N530 STH 47-55 in Keshena and the district office at N522 STH 47-55, while Menominee Indian Middle School and Menominee Indian High School also operate in Keshena. That makes the lending closets more than a classroom project. They are a school-based access point inside the district’s broader role as a community institution.

In practical terms, the closets help move regalia out of storage and into the hands of students who need it. In cultural terms, they widen the circle of who gets to show up. For Menominee families, that is a small logistical fix with a lasting effect on belonging.