Rural America Initiatives

Rural America Initiatives Rural America Initiatives (RAI) is an all-Native non-profit organization founded in 1986 to provide opportunities to the Native community in Rapid City.

Our aim is to work with Native American families to give them the tools necessary to be successful. Our goal is a sustainable early intervention program to give power to an Indian community with restricted access to services through increased access to cultural support and community resources. We aim to provide the tools families need to become self-sufficient and raise strong children with paths to healthy futures. We intend to increase awareness of our work locally, regionally and nationally in order to broaden our base of support, continue, grow and evolve successful programs, and be sustainable into the future. An important target population for Rural America Initiatives is families who migrate from a reservation to Rapid City within the year. These families are often the most economically disadvantaged and vulnerable, and the poverty they face is staggering. Native Americans come to the city from the reservation for increased opportunities and a better way of life. Often, however, they find conditions here much more difficult, without the network and support systems of the reservation. We structure our programs like a Tiyospaye (family), grounded in traditional culture and replicating the family support found on reservations. We embrace the philosophy of serving the family through the child, and educating the parents to be the educators of the children. Our goal was and is to develop a new society of Indian men and women, or "Ikce wicasa na winyan" (Common Man and Woman) who work within the community to strengthen our community's families by practicing the values of respect, honesty, language, generosity and courage, and the interconnectedness we have with each other, and with mother earth.

🎃 Classroom Gnugnuska did a Sensory Pumpkin Wash Station today! 🎃🫧
10/06/2026

🎃 Classroom Gnugnuska did a Sensory Pumpkin Wash Station today! 🎃🫧

Head Start and Early Head Start families! Please schedule your first Family Partnership of the year with your Family Ser...
10/05/2026

Head Start and Early Head Start families! Please schedule your first Family Partnership of the year with your Family Services Advocate! Pilamayaye!

Anpetu waste Head Start and Early Head Start families! We are excited to announce that we will be using Learning Genie t...
10/05/2026

Anpetu waste Head Start and Early Head Start families! We are excited to announce that we will be using Learning Genie to communicate with families and share learning resources. Through this program, we will be able to share digital learning resources and at-home in kind activities, update you on your child’s learning progress with photos and reports, and provide ways for you to continue enhancing your child’s early learning at home. Please stop in with Family Services during drop off and pick up for assistance! Pilamayaye 😊

Pilamayaye to all the families who attended our Tanyan Gli lunch today! Have a wonderful weekend! 🩷
10/02/2026

Pilamayaye to all the families who attended our Tanyan Gli lunch today! Have a wonderful weekend! 🩷

Anpetu waste! Head Start and Early Head Start families, join your child for lunch TODAY at 11:00 AM!
10/02/2026

Anpetu waste! Head Start and Early Head Start families, join your child for lunch TODAY at 11:00 AM!

Prenatal to Five Head Start families, here is the October calendar! 🍂
10/01/2026

Prenatal to Five Head Start families, here is the October calendar! 🍂

Anpetu waste Prenatal to Five Head Start families! You are invited to join us for our Woskate Ptaŋyétu (Fall Festivities...
10/01/2026

Anpetu waste Prenatal to Five Head Start families! You are invited to join us for our Woskate Ptaŋyétu (Fall Festivities)!

09/29/2026

Laundry Love is back at Parkway Laundromat. Here's our schedule for the remainder of the year. Please remember that it is a limit of 3 loads per person and machines are not to be reserved, LL volunteers will allocate the machines fairly. If you are interested in volunteering or financially supporting LL, please send us a message.

Anpetu waste! Head Start and Early Head Start families, join your child for lunch THIS Friday! Please contact the center...
09/29/2026

Anpetu waste! Head Start and Early Head Start families, join your child for lunch THIS Friday! Please contact the center by September 30 if you need transportation!

Great news!!!! We are opening doors OCTOBER 5, 2026! We are still accepting applications! If you have any questions abou...
09/28/2026

Great news!!!! We are opening doors OCTOBER 5, 2026!
We are still accepting applications!
If you have any questions about enrollment, please reach out.
We are super excited to open more doors for families who are need of childcare. Also we do accept childcare assistance. ❤️😊
Again, our first day of Wakháŋyeža Child Care is October 5, 2026!

Shawn Little Thunder
(C)605-381-6178
(B)605-791-0438
(E) [email protected]
612 Crazy Horse St
RC SD 57701

Address

2112 S. Valley Drive
Rapid City, SD
57703

Telephone

(605) 341-3339

Website

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