Welcome Northwestern University Class of 2029!
March 26, 2025
Boozhoo, Posoh, Shekoli, Ahau —
Welcome Northwestern University Class of 2029! We’re excited to say “hello” in some of the languages that reflect our growing community of Indigenous scholars. The Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR) was launched in 2017 as a result of student activism and community support. The CNAIR house at 515 Clark serves as a physical hub for students and community to gather in an Indigenous space. Today, the center continues to commit to developing and promoting reciprocal and sovereignty-affirming relationships and partnerships with Native American and Indigenous communities globally.
Our Center is comprised of faculty, students, and staff on the Chicago and Evanston campuses. As part of our mission to advance artistic and cultural expression and teaching and learning, we have a variety of enriching experiences for students and community members including the Native American and Indigenous Studies Minor and Undergraduate Research Fellowships. We also offer a variety of amenities like study spaces, snacks, free printing, coffee, and fun!
We encourage you to review CNAIR's 2023-2024 Annual Report to learn more about the work our community has done on campus and in partnership with Indigenous communities. The report highlights academics, programming, and community-partnered research projects like the Manoomin Collective and the Indigenous STEAM Collaborative. Every Spring quarter, we celebrate the work of our CNAIR community and Indigenous partners through the annual CNAIR Research Symposium.
Last year we prioritized elevating, teaching, and sharing what it means to utilize Indigenous methodology though programming, courses and, our artist in residence. This year we continued promoting our theme 100 Years Back, 100 Years Forward to engage and reflect on the past 100 years of the 1924 Indian Citizenship Act and to imagine forward for the next 100 years for Indigenous communities. Through this theme, CNAIR will create collective engagement with the many layers and dynamics that are implicated both by the historical conditions that have created the present and what is critical in exercising self-determination over the next 100 years.
As we look toward the future of CNAIR, we are excited for the continued expansion of professional and academic initiatives to support our growing student body. We are glad you are here and look forward to seeing you In the CNAIR house!
All the best on your college journey,
Megan Bang, Ph.D. (Ojibwe and Italian descent)
Professor, School of Education and Social Policy
Director, Center for Native American & Indigenous Research
Pamala M. Silas (Menominee/Oneida)
Associate Director, Outreach & Engagement
Michaela Marchi (Isleta Pueblo/Filipina/Italian)
Program Assistant
Katherine Castillo
Associate Research Administrator