The United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. (UNITY) Every year UNITY, the United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc., hosts a mid-year conference to bring youth together from Indian communities from all over the country. UNITY promotes cultural heritage, community service, and leadership among Native American youth. This year, 20 students and advisors were invited to sit down with Kim Teehee, Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs and Jodi Archambault Gillette, Deputy Associate Director of Intergovernmental Affairs to President Barack Obama. They got to talk to Kim and Jodi about their lives and ask them questions about how they became the first two Native Americans to work at such a high level. The meeting happened only a few hundred yards away from the White House!  The students learned that Kim and Jodi were also involved with UNITY as kids.  Kim, who is Cherokee and Jodi, who is Standing Rock Sioux told the students to appreciate and learn from the good and bad experiences in their lives and to grow from them.  They wanted the students to know that it is important to be surrounded by people that have similar goals and dreams and will give their support to them when they need it.  One student asked a question about being successful when you don’t have two parents at home and Jodi encouraged the students to reach out to their extended family or people in the Indian community who care about young people.  Kim pointed out that groups like UNITY were a good support system to her but to also seek out mentors and counselors.  At the end of the day, they talked about the open door policy the White House has for Native American youth. Kim and Jodi reminded them that when talking about challenges they face in their communities, to also think about solutions.