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Laren Richards, Sequoyah High School senior and Oklahoma state academic champion.

TAHLEQUAH, OKLAHOMA – Sequoyah High School (SHS) can add another state championship to their growing list of titles. This one doesn’t involve a round ball or a pair or running shoes. Laren Richards, a senior at SHS, earned first place in Oklahoma history at the Oklahoma State Tournament of Academic Champions, an honor that no other student from SHS has won before.

“Laren has studied a lot on his own and retained historical information about Oklahoma and his Native American culture all his high school years and has been one of the leaders on our varsity academic team and for our Cherokee challenge bowl teams every year,” said Margaret James, academic team sponsor. “We are so proud of him.”

Like every state champion at Sequoyah, Richards will receive a ring in honor of his accomplishment. In addition to his involvement in the academic team, he is also a member of Honoring Our People’s Existence (H.O.P.E.) club and was recently named a Gates Millennium Scholar. He plans to attend college at Haskell Indian Nations University and major in Native American history and culture.

“We are graduating a wonderful person in Laren and he deserves this reward,” added Karen Mullican, academic team co-sponsor. “We are so proud to have been his sponsors and we have high expectations for him when he leaves us.”

Sequoyah High School "Home of the Indians!" P.O. Box 520, Tahlequah, OK 74465             Sequoyah High School Alumni P.O. Box 187, Park Hill, OK 74451-0187 Sequoyah High School, an Indian boarding school, originated in 1871, when the Cherokee National Council passed an act setting up an orphan asylum to take care of many orphans that came out of the Civil War. Sequoyah High School's approximate 300 enrollment represents 42 tribes and 14 different states. Students are eligible to attend if they are members of federally recognized Indian tribes or one-fourth blood descendants of such members.