North Dakota State University will celebrate American Indian Heritage Month during November. The Office of Multicultural Programs has planned several events to honor this month.
Clifford Canku will present the opening ceremony and Dakota cultural presentation on Thursday, Nov. 5, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. in the Memorial Union Arikara room.
An American Indian war bonnet is on display in the Office of Multicultural Programs until Nov. 30. The war bonnet honors fallen U.S. Army National Guard Cpl. Nathan Goodiron, 25, of Mandaree, N.D., a member of the Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara Nation. The headdress is on loan from NDSU student Sam Floberg, a decorated veteran of the War on Terror. The Goodiron family and the North Dakota National Guard, 1st Battalion, 188th Air Defense Artillery honored Floberg with the gift of the war bonnet when he returned to North Dakota. The Office of Multicultural Programs is located in the Memorial Union and is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The Native American Student Association will have raffle ticket sale throughout the month. Participants will have an opportunity to win a star quilt. For more information, contact nichole.stoltz@ndsu.edu.
Fargo-Moorhead American Indian organization directors will share information about their organizations and ways to get involved during a panel discussion on Friday, Nov. 13, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Meadow Lark room. The panel will be comprised of representatives from Daughters of the Earth, Sacred Spirits, City of Fargo Native American Commission, Native American Veterans Group, Sweet Medicine and the Wesley Center, New Native American Center, Fargo Indian Education Program and the Moorhead Indian Education Program.
The Turtle Mountain Education Service Trip is scheduled for Nov. 13-14. A group of NDSU students, staff and faculty will travel to Belcourt, N.D., to learn about the Turtle Mountain Chippewa reservation and will paint, clean and do minor repairs on elders' homes in the area. The Turtle Mountain Housing Authority, NDSU Memorial Union's Service Learning Program and the NDSU Office of Multicultural Programs are organizing the event. For more information, contact Monique Vondall-Rieke at 1-6179.
Monte Yellow Bird, American Indian artist, will present an art commission dedication and ceremony on Thursday, Nov. 19, at 3 p.m. in the Memorial Union Art Gallery. For more information, contact Esther Hockett at 1-8239.
Students from the Candeska Cikana Community College, Fort Totten, N.D., will perform and teach participants American Indian Hand Games on Sunday, Nov. 21, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Memorial Union Great room.
Canku will present "Getting to Know our Partners Seminar Series: Native History Pre and Post Columbus," on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 6 p.m. in the Memorial Union Arikara room. From a cultural perspective, he will discuss the historic story of American Indians from just before Columbus' arrival in North America to the mid-20th century. The Tribal College-NDSU Partnership Initiative; Division of Equity, Diversity, and Global Outreach, North Dakota Extension Service and NDSU Advance FORWARD are sponsoring the event.
For more information on any of these events, call the Office of Multicultural Programs at (701) 231-1029.