North Dakota State University Students, faculty and staff will participate in the Turtle Mountain Education Service Trip on Nov. 13-14. Participants will travel to Belcourt, N.D., to learn about the Turtle Mountain Chippewa Reservation and to help out with painting, cleaning and minor repairs for local tribal elders' homes.
"This trip is important to not only the NDSU students, faculty and staff who will take part in it, but it will be a meaningful impact to the tribal members of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians," said Monique Vondall-Rieke, program coordinator for the NDSU Office of Multicultural Programs and member of the tribe.
Before the trip, volunteers will learn about the culture of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians through an orientation. Vondall-Rieke; Matt Skoy, assistant director for NDSU's Service Learning and Civic Engagement; Robert Pieri, NDSU's Tribal College liaison and professor of engineering; and Clifford Canku, professor of Dakota studies at NDSU, will present the orientation.
"Volunteers will put to good use their skills and education in the area of diversity and share it with the NDSU community upon returning from the trip," Skoy said. "It is our hope that we can do other trips like this with our students if this proves to be the successful project we anticipate it to be."
The Turtle Mountain Housing Authority, NDSU Memorial Union's Service Learning Program and the NDSU Office of Multicultural Programs are organizing the event. Organizers are accepting donations of supplies, including paint, paintbrushes, nails, tools and other minor repair equipment and cleaning supplies.
For more information, contact the NDSU Volunteer Network at (701) 231-1055 or NDSU.volunteer.network@ndsu.edu.