Akiptan is excited to share our 2026 Okhíčhaŋye Scholarship awardees. With half a decade of experience behind the scholarship initiative, supporting Native American high school students continues to be a priority. This scholarship is dedicated to high school seniors graduating in the spring of each year and who are seeking higher education that will support the agriculture industry. Students pursuing a degree that supports an agriculture education at either a college/univers

To kick off our first ever success story, I think it’s important to talk about Akiptan’s first loan to a young lady who inspired the idea of Akiptan. Tayla is a young Lakota from the Cheyenne River Sioux Nation who was wanting to join her family in their ranching operation by starting her own herd. Tayla had the unique idea to purchase a milk cow to breed and to also raise several other bum calves. In order to grow her herd she would keep back a couple of the calves and sell