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[ Music ]
>>Morning girls.
>>Good morning dad.
>>I'm going to school.
Working and family is not easy.
I know I have one final next week.
>>20th?
>>Yeah, the 20th.
>>My name's Clarice Madalena; I'm from New Mexico.
I'm half Acoma, half Jemez Pueblo.
You guys got 3 minutes.
I'm married and I have 2 girls;
Jordan who is 10 and Morgan who is 6.
Are you going to comb your hair
because you guys got to leave soon.
They're pretty independent which helps.
It's still hard trying to be a traditional mom I guess.
My parents, their generation's different
to where the woman stayed home, did the cleaning,
the cooking, raising the kids.
They really wanted me to do that;
that's who they wanted me to be.
It just wasn't for me [laughs].
[ Music ]
What I love about environmental science is everything;
climate, earth.
Growing up a Native American with traditional values,
the earth was always part of our prayers.
[ Music ]
That's, you know, where we come from and that's
who we should always respect, so in a sense it was always there.
My dad was talking to my brothers and my husband
about going back to school for GIS and they were already set
in stone what their path was, so it's like,
"Well why not, I'll do it."
At SIPI you get one-on-one.
The people want to make sure you do well.
They'll help you any way they can
and it's just a smaller environment.
This classroom, there's more...it's a Native American
school, so you're more comfortable.
I wasn't planning on getting a bachelors degree.
I just kind of wanted to get my associates in GIT.
Going from SIPI to the University of New Mexico,
that was a little overwhelming.
My job requires that I be at UNM getting my bachelor's degree.
What really pushed me towards majoring
in environmental science is the background I had with my GIT
because the GIS stuff actually comes in handy with a lot
of environmental sciences;
you know integrating the GPS data that I get.
Mainly it was the drinking water wasn't it
that we were really wanting
because everything else she already sent us?
I never actually really thought
of doing environmental science right away.
I just kind of wanted to get out of SIPI and get a job
because I have my family and I couldn't afford
to be you know struggling.
[ Music ]
I work for the Department of Interior,
Office of Surface Mining here in Albuquerque.
What I am is a GIS technician.
In a nutshell, I make maps using digital images as well
as integrating the GPS data that I get from the inspectors
who go out to the coal mines.
It helps to know what people are talking about as far
as what I've learned in class.
You know about why the earth does this
or what soil samples are, water samples are, air samples;
those are all pretty handy to have as a background.
That way you at least know where to go if you have more questions
and how to research it.
[ Music ]
Since I'm a student right now, my field work is very limited.
I have gone out to a coal mine once now
and that was interesting.
I mean I got to see what the inspectors actually do
with their GPS units and what they're looking for.
And when they bring the GPS units back, I download the data.
If they need a map of it, then that's what I do.
[ Music ]
Studying and doing my homework...oh man;
that's a tough one sometimes.
It's hard, but I do well enough to pass [laughs];
I guess that's a good thing.
It works somehow.
[ Music ]
It's hard to do it at home right when I get home with my kids
because they want my attention as well.
I got to make sure their homework's done
because sometimes they'll try to be sneaky about not doing it.
Where's your folder; in your bag?
>>I keep forgetting.
>>I find myself questioning myself
if I'm doing the right thing for my kids,
especially if they're struggling in school.
I keep going back to, "Should I even be going to school?
Should I even be at work?
Do I really need to spend more time with them?"
But it's also another driving force to get me to finish
because I don't want them to have that mentality
to where they're questioning who they are
and what they should be doing.
I want them to be independent; to grow up knowing
that they can do anything, no matter how hard it is.
And I just keep looking to my girls thinking, "Oh I want them
to do it before they get old and married."
[Laughs.] You got to do what's best for you and your family
and I think that's the main thing that's important.
Environmental science, I think it's more important now
because of how the earth's changing,
how energy is being consumed rapidly, and there's just
so many people now populating the earth
that you know where's our resources going?
So I think we can save certain aspects of our earth
that we're going to need.
That's kind of my goal is to eventually work for a tribe
to meet the help of maintaining their resources
because we need it.
So the earth is other mother and we need to take care of her.