Ohio State University celebrated American Indian Awareness Week Monday through Saturday.
Events, conferences and the OSU Miss Indian America Pageant were held throughout the week.
Chris Blankenship is an Indigenous graduate student studying mathematics and has always valued his education.
“I've always placed a high value on mathematics,” Blankenship said. “My grandfather was a teacher, and he really valued education. He sat me and my sister down one day. We were both straight students. He said, 'This is a gift you should use.'
Blankenship wrote off mathematics as something easy for him. But his grandfather's words remained stuck in his mind. He also realized that there were not a large number of indigenous people in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.
“My grandfather saw that, how rare it was. And that (conversation) was huge for me to take this seriously and know that I had something to offer,” Blankenship said.
Dawna Riding in Hair, a professor of Native American Studies at The Ohio State University, uses education not only to teach others about her culture, but also to learn more about it herself.
“I have a mix of Indigenous and non-Indigenous students,” Riding In Hare said. “I enjoy having Indigenous students in the class because there is a lot of history, a lot that I don’t know about other tribes. They are bringing their community forward, and we can talk about that.”
Each tribe has distinctive characteristics. Oklahoma has 39 tribal nations, all with unique histories and cultures.
“Being Native, it's kind of an umbrella,” Blankenship said. “I see differences in culture and mentalities within different tribes.”
Native Americans have an economic impact that is often overlooked, Riding N. Hare said. Indigenous people are “economic engines” of their communities, she said.
Indigenous people play a vital role in the state's economy, said Caleb Garcia, a pre-law economics major and American Indian master at Ohio State University.
“If you removed tribal economies from the state, Oklahoma's economy would be similar to that of Nicaragua or Honduras,” Garcia said.
Both Riding in Hare and Garcia are involved with the Center for Sovereign Nations at Ohio State University. The center is dedicated to increasing the number of Native American graduates at the school, building partnerships with 39 tribes and advancing the understanding of sovereignty as it relates to Native Americans.
“To laugh and cry and support each other, that's what I see happening at the center,” Riding in Hair said. “I see a lot of students coming to support each other through student leadership that welcomes and helps connect students to resources.”
Another resource for Native students is the Native American Student Association. This organization provides opportunities for students to participate in cultural events and activities.
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