The Cankdeska Cikana Community College (CCCC) is located within the boundaries of the Spirit Lake Dakota reservation located in Fort Totten, North Dakota. CCCC provides post-secondary higher education opportunities for the Spirit Lake Dakota reservation community in northeastern North Dakota as an accredited, public, non-profit institution. CCCC was named in honor of Paul Yankton Sr. whose Dakota name was Cankdeska Cikana. Paul Yankton Sr. was a recipient of two Purple Hearts and died on November 29, 1944, while serving as a rifleman with the United States Army’s 11th Infantry at Lorraine, France. Cankdeska Cikana translates into English as Little Hoop and is pronounced “Chauñ-GDEH-sh’kah CHEE-kah-nah”.
Our mission is to provide opportunities that lead to student independence and self-sufficiency through academic achievement and continuation of the Spirit Lake Dakota language and culture.
