Toni Tsatoke
Toni Lee Tsatoke is a member of the Kiowa Tribe. She is a direct descendent of Huntinghorse, which is her last name (Tsa-to-ke). Toni comes from a family of veterans. Three uncles (Dale, Gene, and Pepper) are Vietnam Veterans and both maternal grandparents were World War II Veterans. She also has two cousins, Phillip Horse who just completed a second tour of duty in the Middle East and Sonny Tsatoke who is a commissioned officer serving in the White Mountain area of Arizona. She is the granddaughter of one of three original Kiowa Code Talkers of WWII, the late John Tsatoke, Sr.
Her name, Aih-Ohn-Mah translates as "Beautiful Feathers". Toni’s name was passed down from her great-grandma, Minnie Eagleheart (Tapedo) and refers to the feathers of the Scissortail. She enjoys dressing and dancing in the way of her people, which is southern traditional buckskin. Her parents, John and Phyllis have been most supportive in giving her the encouragement and support to continue dancing and pursuing higher education.
Toni graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree from Haskell Indian Nations University. During her undergraduate studies, she earned many honors including the Miss Haskell Scholarship and title and the Miss American Indian Higher Education Consortium scholarship and title. She was also an American Indian College Fund “Student of the Year”. After receiving the AILSA Fellowship at the University of Oklahoma, she earned her M.Ed and has since continued doctoral studies. She is a past recipient of the Christian A. Johnson Fellowship administered through the American Indian Graduate Center. Toni has been named a Barbara L. Jackson Scholar by UCEA, a David L. Clark Scholar by AERA, and a Holmes Scholar. She was inducted into the Gamma Beta Phi Honor and Service Society in 2003 and the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi in 2004. She has recently completed her general exam and residency requirements for a Ph.D. in Educational Administration, Curriculum, and Supervision.Toni resides in Norman, Oklahoma where she is employed at the University of Oklahoma as the Assistant Director of the McNair Scholars Program. She is the President of the American Indian Alumni Society of OU and is also an alumna of Haskell Indian Nations University. Her family looks forward to Denver March each year, as it is a halfway meeting point to see relatives from up north- Myron and Sandra Shield, Gladys Jefferson, and others. She thanks the Denver March Committee for this great honor and looks forward to working with the Head Staff selected this year.
Photo by: Brian Fraker