GRIC Students Attended Construction in Indian Country Conference
November 07, 2025
Jeston Morris
Community Newsperson
Nine Community students attended the first-ever GRIC College Student Experience at the Construction in Indian Country National Conference 2025 at Wild Horse Pass Resorts and Casinos on Oct 8-10.
According to Joseph Brown, Hunter Contracting Co. partnered with the Gila River Indian Community’s Tribal Education Department, ASU’s Construction in Indian Country (CIIC) program, and the Education Standing Committee to launch the first-ever GRIC College Student Experience at CIIC 2025.
The initiative connected GRIC students with industry leaders, contractors, and tribal enterprises to explore careers in construction, engineering, and infrastructure development. The program featured an orientation, networking sessions, and a student debrief at the Wild Horse Pass Resort conference center - all supported through a grant from the Arizona Chapter of the Associated General Contractors (AGC).
The origins of CIIC go back to 2001, when ASU’s Del E. Webb School of Construction (DWSC) collaborated with the Office of American Indian Initiative to address the issue of trust in construction on Indian reservations. The late Dr. Peterson Zah, former chairman and president of the Navajo Nation and special advisor on Indian Affairs at ASU, played a vital role in bringing the CIIC conference to fruition. The first annual CIIC conference was held at Wild Horse Pass Resort and Casino on May 6-7, 2004. The idea during the inception of the conference was, “DWSC could bring together the region’s American Indian Tribes and the construction industry in order to improve trust between the industry and the Tribes concerning construction in Indian Country,” as authored by Roger Owners and Peterson Z. L. Carbajal on the Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) website.
CIIC has grown in the past two decades. The construction industries are collaborating and working with Indian tribal nations. The GRIC students who attended the CIIC conference include Victoria Allison, Starsha Dosela, Sheldon Montero, Mark Strongbow G. Hastings, Letha Lamb, Evelyn Enos, Lenora Mora, and Michelle “Mo” Osife. Joseph Brown, senior project manager at Hunter Contracting Co., led the GRIC college students.
GRIC students’ educational background ranges from vocational training, bachelors, masters, to doctoral degree programs at universities. Allison is finishing up her doctoral course work at Grand Canyon University. Enos is majoring in biological science with a minor in American Indian Studies at ASU. Lamb is majoring in urban planning with a minor in American Indian Studies at ASU. Osife is working on her master’s degree in public relations innovation strategy management (PRISM) at the University of Southern California (USC). Montero completed his HVAC training at the Refrigeration School Inc. (RSI). Hastings is majoring in emergency management and homeland security at ASU. Mora is majoring in business administration at Grand Canyon University (GCU).
The GRIC students attended the Construction 101 workshop, which was presented by a panelist. They include Brinne Arviso (project engineer at Arviso Construction), Chad Hafstrom (principal/co-founder of Kenew Construction Management LLC), Kim Kanuho (president of Fourth World Design Group), Larry Anderson (principal/president of Buffalo Designs), and Mike Salvador (principal/vice president of Buffalo Designs).
The workshop had three main phases: preconstruction, construction, and post-construction. The first phase includes acquiring funding and land, design plan, budget, and completing surveys. The second phase includes site preparation, excavation, framing, roofing, and completing the interior/exterior of the structure. The final phase includes final inspection, walkthrough, and handing over the completed project to the new owner. Each panelist had expert knowledge in their field.
“I learned so much from this morning’s construction workshop. I learn about the pre-construction phase, such as funding, acquiring land, and getting permits. I got a crash course in contractor’s knowledge, which includes the design-bid-build method. Not only that, but I actually like this conference and would like to learn more,” said Hastings.
“This conference is fascinating and eye-opening. There is so much to learn about construction. It really opened my mind, and I am thinking about what I want to bring back to my community with my education and college degree,” said Mora.
“This conference is awesome, and it’s making me think. I would like to own a business and bring the much-needed service to the tribe. I want to operate an HVAC repair service for residential and commercial on and off the reservation,” said Montero.
After lunch, the students met and talked with the exhibitors, and they concluded their college student experience with Brown. Although every student had a different major, they learned that it is possible to pursue a career in construction. For example, business majors can work on the business side of construction.
Communication and public relations majors can work on the advertising side of construction. The HVAC technician can contract with commercial or residential developers. The students had a positive experience at CIIC. Hunter Contracting Co. was one of the sponsors for the Construction in Indian Country National Conference.