By Rich Winter 

605 Sports

In 2014 while playing for the University of San Diego volleyball team, Lauren Schad got an offer she couldn’t refuse. 

With her sister Taylor working for AmeriCorps at the Boys and Girls Club of Rosebud in Mission, South Dakota, the idea was proposed of offering volleyball tutelage.
“We wondered if we could do some kind of volleyball camp,” said Schad, a Rapid City Central High School graduate and member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. “The hope was to do a camp like they do at universities across the country. After thinking about it, the sisters said ‘Why not, let’s go for it.’ ” 

Schad, whose parents Laura and Ralph both have ties to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, grew up in Rapid City. Frequent summer visits back to Eagle Butte helped her gain a deeper perspective on how the 6-foot-2 middle-hitter could give back. 

“Basketball is always so popular on the reservations but we hadn’t seen a lot of Indigenous volleyball players,” she said. “My main focus is to give the opportunity and experience to the youth. We want to get them moving during the summer months and help promote a healthy lifestyle.”

Schad capped a remarkable college volleyball career in San Diego in 2016 where she was named an AVCA All-American Honorable Mention. In 2015, Schad helped the Toreros reach the second round of the NCAA Division I tournament. 

During her collegiate career Schad could not help but notice the advantages that kids living in metropolitan areas had. 

“Universities are always going to places and holding camps where there aren’t Indigenous populations,” she said. “One of my main goals is to ensure that Indigenous youth have equal  opportunities.” 

While Schad grew up in Rapid City she still experienced the pangs of not being able to play her favorite sport as much as she would have liked. 

“Volleyball is a sport that is very expensive,” she said. “It costs money to play volleyball and in the summer I could only play half a season because we couldn’t afford the entire summer session.” 

With zero opportunities to play professional volleyball in the United States, Schad moved to Chamalieras, France in 2017 for her rookie season. In 2018 Schad moved to the northwest corner of France to play for the Nantes volleyball team. 

Schad and her team won silver in both the Coupe de France and the Championship of France and received bronze the following two seasons. She competed in the Champions League for three out of five seasons in France.

As her journey progressed and the summer camps for Indigenous populations continued in South Dakota, her own story drove Schad to give back. 

“That was the driving force for me to give kids a healthy outlet,” she said. “If someone from Rapid City can get their education paid for and if I’m able to inspire one person that is very powerful.” 

While living in France, Schad continued to come back to the United States every summer to hold camps. The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted the volleyball camps for a few seasons but this summer Schad came back and held three camps. 

• Haudenosaunee Volleyball and Youth Leadership Camp (New York)

• Fort Peck, Montana

• Cheyenne River Youth Project

Of the three camps, Schad saved the Cheyenne River Youth Project for last.  

“I’m always humbled and very proud to come back to the communities,” she said. “I was there every summer when I was growing up and it’s very special for me to come home and see my family.” 

In addition to the volleyball camps, Schad has worked with the Cheyenne River Youth Project on food distribution and parks. This is the third camp Schad has held in Eagle Butte and she enjoys hearing from the community elders. 

“The elders are always very appreciative and it is a good feeling when you hear that you are making a difference,” she said. 

And then of course there is the actual volleyball aspect of the camps. 

“It is pretty cool to see a girl there in her freshman season and then now to see a couple of girls that are playing at community colleges and that’s the most rewarding part,” she said.