by By Dan Ninham (Oneida)
Lauren Schad is Cheyenne River Sioux with cultural and familial roots in her hometown of Rapid City, SD. She is the daughter of Ralph and Laura Schad. A versatile high school athlete at Rapid City Central High School, Lauren excelled at volleyball at the club and high school levels earning all state honors.
As a recruit to NCAA DI University of San Diego, she helped lead the team to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament as a freshman. She had stellar sophomore and junior seasons again leading the team into the NCAA Tournament each year. She was also selected to play with the US National Team during the summer of 2015. As a senior she was named an AVCA All-American Honorable Mention.
Lauren Schad moved up the ladder to be a model and professional volleyball player for Volleyball Nantes-Pro, Nantes, France.
“I’ve now begun my third professional season in France, and my second consecutive year with volleyball Nantes,” said Lauren Schad. “We have the same team besides three new comers which gives us a good advantage leading into season. Our success in the last season, receiving Silver medals in both the French Cup and French Championship, allowed us to qualify and be able to compete this season in European’s most elite club competition. Our first round of the Coupe de France tournament will begin Tuesday, October 29th.”
“We are 3-1 in our season at the moment. I was out for most of preseason and for the first two season matches due to rehabilitation and a minor injury in my knee but have been able to play since,” added Lauren.
Lauren Schad
Lauren was named an N7 ambassador in June of 2018 as an athlete that reflects the Native community and influences Native youth. A new Nike line is releasing 11/7 and the updated N7 fund message:
Nike is committed to getting youth in Native American and Aboriginal communities moving so they can lead healthier, happier and more successful lives. Through Nike’s N7 Fund, they support organizations that provide sport and physical activity programming to youth in these communities. The N7 Fund helps them reach their greatest potential through play and sport and creates more equal playing fields for all.
“The N7 platform has allowed me to reach a more diverse group of youth nationally and internationally,” said Lauren. “I was able to work with girls in a camp of mine in Canada, and I went to Alaska this past summer. Girls from Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota attended my camps. So it’s getting to a larger scale with talks of potentially working my way to the east coast this upcoming summer.”
“When my sisters and I were growing up our mom would always remind us that regardless of what we chose to do in life, we always had to remember the importance of humility,” said Lauren. “She would teach us other values such as courage, generosity, and wisdom, which I take with me whenever I step foot on the court or I talk about something that matters to me, but humility was always the big one that stuck with me. Throughout my athletic career I’ve been extremely fortunate with the opportunities I’ve been given and I give a lot of credit for that to those who have supported me and helped me along the way.”
“I never truly saw myself as a leader because I was always being led by amazing mentors and people myself, but as I get older I realize that you are still able to be a leader yourself and to have leaders ahead of you. It’s a whole chain of people, your own ‘tunkasila’ (community in Lakota) that allows us to succeed and impact the next generation and I think that’s what makes the indigenous experience of going through life so special. We have these values that are taught to us at such a young age that it allows us to go about things in a really good way,” added Lauren.
Lauren said: “There are a lot of successes throughout the years that have really stuck with me. What’s cool is that they range from different levels of success. For instance, some campers are really shy the first day or two, but when you can connect with them enough for them to open up and participate more in the trainings, that’s a win in my book. There are also girls that I’ve seen return year after year and to see the progress from middle school, to high school, it’s a fun experience getting to see them evolve like that. A lot of kids keep in contact with me after the camps to just reach out or to ask for advice outside of volleyball. Building the relationships with these kids that go outside of volleyball is the biggest win.”
Photographs provided by Corentin Pingeon.
