Riverside Beading Club members Allison Grosskop and Emily McClure work on a cap as teachers gather after class to make beaded mortar boards for native students to wear for graduation.

Oneida beadwork artist Mariah Tyakohelahthè Diaz celebrates her Native American identity while preserving cultural traditions through her business, Ostalókwa by Mariah.

During graduation season many, jokingly or grudgingly, recite the Robert Orben quote: "A graduation ceremony is an event where the commencement speaker tells thousands of students dressed in identical ...