Welcome to ISIS

ISIS is the Indigenous Sisterhood of Interdisciplinary Scholars of Northern Arizona.  ISIS started as a small grant project funded by the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation and The NAU School of Forestry.  The project was developed by Dr. Sally Alcoze, Dr. Thom Alcoze, and NAU forestry graduate student, Amanda Manzo.  The purpose of this project was to develop a small mentor group of Native American Students at NAU and CCC through research experience on reservation lands and professional development workshops.  In addition, these students would mentor Kaibab Paiute youth as Native American college students. 

While the ultimate goal to create a mentor group was achieved, this project has developed into much more!  Dedicated members, life-long friendships, trusted community members, successful students, tribal partnerships, and ecological research experience for undergraduate students are just a few of the fantastic outcomes from the ISIS project. 

Because the ISIS members are dedicated to one another, this project continues to thrive and grow despite little to no funding.

Story of the Sego Lily

After a long hot day of conducting vegetation plots on the Kaibab Paiute Reservation, ISIS discovered Sego Lilies alongside the dirt road on the way back to camp.  Quickly the ladies jumped from the crew truck and began to dig for the onion bulbs at the base of the plants.  Later that night, those tubers became part of our tasty pork chop dinner.  We all have fond memories of laughing and gathering these onion bulbs together.

The Sego lily symbolizes purity, beauty, patience in darkness and storing strength for the time of blossoming.  This makes the Sego lily a perfect symbol for the Indigenous Sisterhood of Interdisciplinary Scholars.  

                             Digging and Gathering Sego Lily Bulbs for Feast on the Kaibab Paiute Reservation