News Release

Note: Media representatives are welcome
to cover the announcement today (Sept. 7).

American Indian issues, research
to be focus of new UNC center

CHAPEL HILL – The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will create one of the only centers on the East Coast to focus solely on American Indian issues and research.

The American Indian Center will be a leader in native scholarship and service, said Dr. Bernadette Gray-Little, executive vice chancellor and provost.

“Establishing this center will enable Carolina to develop the rich cultural and historical legacy of the state’s first people into an important area of scholarship and intellectual leadership,” she said.

Plans will be announced in a reception today (Sept. 7) for American Indian students, faculty and staff, to be held from 5-7 p.m. in the George Watts Hill Alumni Center on Stadium Drive.

The next step will be a nationwide search for a center director, Gray-Little said. The director will collaborate with faculty, students and staff to initiate new programs, continue outreach to American Indian communities and raise funds for the center, she said. No date has been set for the center’s opening; officials hope to locate space on campus for the center soon.

“The creation of this American Indian Center will set the stage for a new and historic relationship between UNC-Chapel Hill and American Indian communities of North Carolina,” said Greg Richardson, executive director of the N.C. Commission of Indian Affairs, who is expected to attend the reception. “The center will help create educational partnerships that benefit both Indian communities and the university.”

In June, former Provost Robert Shelton approved a proposal for the center by the Provost’s Committee on Native American Issues. Center objectives in the proposal included:

• establishing a leadership institute for North Carolina tribal leaders, in collaboration with the UNC School of Government – a program Richardson said the state commission has advocated;
• helping faculty and student researchers partner with native communities;
• including native perspectives and cultures in UNC research projects;
• communicating regularly with American Indian tribal leaders and communities;
• sponsoring and facilitating activities that give visibility to and provide learning opportunities regarding American Indian cultures, histories and perspectives; and
• promoting inclusion of native people and perspective in campus dialogues.

“The goal of the center is to make native issues a permanent part of the intellectual life of this university,” said committee chair Sandra Hoeflich, associate dean for interdisciplinary education, fellowships and communication at the UNC Graduate School. “Establishing the center will make Carolina a leading public university for American Indian scholarship.”

She said the new center will focus on quality research and scholarship on American Indian issues, dissemination of this research to the public and native communities, and the inclusion of American Indian cultures and traditions in Carolina’s learning environment.

“This a major step forward for UNC in recognizing and supporting American Indians in the academic realm,” said Damon Jacobs, a doctoral student in cell and molecular physiology and president of the First Nations Graduate Circle student organization. “We are confident the center will provide leadership, focus and strength for a growing native community, on this campus and beyond.”

North Carolina is home to the largest American Indian population east of the Mississippi River. Last year, the U.S. Census estimated the state’s total population at just under 8.7 million, with 1.3 percent, or approximately 113,100, listed as American Indians and Alaskan natives.

The UNC student body mirrors that percentage. Last fall American Indian students numbered 238, nearly one percent of total enrollment. American Indian students and faculty at Carolina include members of the state’s eight tribes as well as tribes from across the United States and Canada.

Communication studies major Brandi Brooks, president of the Carolina Indian Circle undergraduate student group, said the center will be an umbrella for American Indian resources and increase the awareness and presence of American Indians at the university: “This is a huge step toward ensuring our American Indian cultural heritage is recognized and respected at UNC.”

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Contacts: Sandra Hoeflich, (919) 962-6323, sandra@unc.edu; Kevin Maynor, associate chair, Provost’s Committee on Native American Issues, (919) 962-4453, Kevin_maynor@unc.edu; Carol Tresolini, associate provost for academic initiatives, (919) 962-3907, carol_tresolini@unc.edu

N.C. Commission of Indian Affairs: Executive Director Gregory Richardson, (919) 733-5998, greg.richardson@ncmail.net; http://www.doa.state.nc.us/cia/indian.htm