Native American Student
Support Services Newsletter
University of Massachusetts
Amherst
Vol. 1 No 1.
Spring 2004
Group photo from UMASS Pow Wow 2002 Welcome Back
Students and
Happy New Year! Joyce and Michelle would like to wish all returning
students a happy and prosperous 2004.
We look forward to seeing everyone in the NASSS office for
assistance with academics, financial aid, housing and other university
issues. This
semester the Josephine White Eagle Cultural Center will host several
Graduate students to speak about their programs of study. In March Joan Avant Tavares, a
Doctoral student in the School of Ed, will speak about “Why your Native Voice
& Academic Success is Important”.
Also in March we have Kristen French to speak about
“Storytelling and Education”. Roderick
Anderson will speak about “Contemporary Issues” Time and date TBA. The
location will be the JWECC. Email, What’s the Big Deal? Many
of our students have a UMASS email account that they neglect, if you are
one of these students you need to get in the habit of checking your UMASS
account on a regular basis. Starting February 15, 2004 all active
students are required to use their OIT email address to receive official
UMASS communications. The e-mail communications may include
information on bills, holds, official UMASS policies and other university
updates. Students will be responsible for all
information sent via email. No
excuses will be accepted, so if you’re not connected, get connected now! The OIT (Office of Information
Technologies) is located in Lederle Grad Research Towers, main entrance
level, room A217. We will continue to offer workshops
for our students. So far, this
semester workshops scheduled will include: Health Services,
International Exchange, Library Tutorial, Time Management, and for all you
seniors or anyone interested in an internship or co-op, Career Services. Please
contact Michelle at the NASSS office, 577-0980 if you interested in
participating in any of these workshops. The
ALANA Job Fair will be held FEBRUARY 11 from 5:30-8:30pm in the Campus
Center Auditorium.
Last
but not least, the NASSS staff will need students to assist them during the
annual phone-a-thon taking place this March. During the phone-a-thon we contact accepted students for fall
04’ and find out if they plan to attend UMASS. We also inform them of our open house programs that take
place during the spring, and answer any questions they may have regarding
UMASS. Please contact the NASSS office if you are
interested in helping out. Looking for a Job? The New Students Program is looking for
students to work during the summer as an orientation counselor. They are looking for students who have
high energy, enthusiasm, communication skills, friendliness and able to
work as a team member. Applications
are available from the New Students Program located in the Undergraduate
admissions Building. Application
deadlines are February 6, 2004. More jobs are posted by the Student
Employment Office located on the second floor of Whitmore Administration
Building. You can also visit them
online at http://www.umass.edu/umfa/seo/index.html
The
Visitor Center is looking for enthusiastic students to become a tour
guide/admissions representative.
Duties will include giving prospective students a tour of campus and
conducting student interviews with prospective students. If you are interested, applications are
available in the Visitor Center and the NASSS office. The application deadline is February 13,
2004.
Page 2
CERTIFICATE
PROGRAM IN NATIVE AMERICAN INDIAN STUDIES
Jean
Simon, Principal researcher for her community, will also be our 2004 Tribal
Historian in Residence. Their
ancestors from southern New England were sold into slavery in Bermuda in
the 1600s. A reception to welcome
Jean Foggo Simon will be announced.
CPNAIS is open to all UMASS
under-graduates; we encourage Native students to apply. You must have a major and cannot enroll
in your graduating semester. CPNAIS supports Alternative Spring Break
options such as last years trip with the Occaneechi Saponi in North
Carolina. For
more information visit www.umass.edu/nativestudies/
or call
Ron Welburn at 577-1607 CPNAIS
provides students with a structured understanding of the historical and
contemporary issues affecting the Western hemisphere’s First Nations. Anthro 370, Contemporary Issues in
Native America: The Northeast, is our mandatory course. Its speakers for spring 2004 will be
Linda Coombs (Aquinnah Wampanoag, 2/19; Tom Porter (Mohawk), 3/4/04; Trudie
Lamb Richmond (Schaghticoke), 3/25; Cathy Martin (Mi’kmaq), 4/8; and Jean
Foggo Simon (St. David’s Island Indians, Bermuda) 4/29. The class takes place Wednesdays from
2:30-5:00pm in Tobin Hall, room 304.
All students are welcome. The CPNAIS design reflects a commitment
to Native Studies from an Eastern Algonquin point of View and frame of
reference.
HELP
IS NEEDED IN PLANNING THE 26TH ANNUAL POWWOW
Mark
your calendar! The 26th annual
UMASS Powwow will be taking place on September 18 and 19 at the Campus
Center Pond. NASA and the Powwow committee have
started the initial planning of the Powwow but would like some help with
the remaining work. In order to
make this Powwow grand, planning has to take place now. Volunteers are always needed, so get
involved and help your community! Designed created by Native student and Art major Andrew Leonard (02).
First day of classes January 28 Last day to add/drop With no record February 10 Monday class schedule February 18 Spring recess March 13 Classes resume March 22 with a “W” March 25 Counseling period begins April 12 Counseling period ends April 16 Holiday/Patriots day April 19 Monday class schedule April 22 Last day of classes May 13 Final exams begin May 15 Semester ends May 21
UPDATES ON THE JOSEPHINE WHITE EAGLE CULTURAL CENTER
Last
semester the computers in the Josephine White Eagle Cultural Center
computer lab were down and unfortunately they were not fixed before
students left for winter session break.
Well, we are happy to report that all the
computers will be fixed the beginning of spring semester. Additionally, we have received several
four-year-old computers from admissions and career services. We send thanks out to undergraduate
admissions and career services for their kind donations. The
dates and themes of the art showings for spring semester are as follows. February 12, the theme is Speech March 11, the theme is
Reflection May 5, For more information or an application
please contact Lauren Mapp at the cultural center (Wednesdays
11:30am-4:30pm) 545-4932. Or email mohawkgirl1985@msn.com. As
you may know the cultural center library has been restored to its original
appearance, all leaks have been fixed.
The library will now be the new location
of our student art exhibits.
Freshman student, Lauren Mapp, has been organizing themes and dates
for students to either display visual work or speak their art through poems
and stories. There will be an opening reception, date
to be announced.
If
you do not have a declared major you are required to go to pre-major advising
in Goodell for any academic concerns.
NASSS offers academic counseling after you have met with your pre-major
advisor.
If you are looking
to change your room it would be more efficient for you to request a room swap
rather than a room change so you can avoid the $100.00 fee.
If
you missed pre-registration and would like to add a class that may be full, try
emailing or calling the professor before hand.
It helps to give a brief but concrete rationale for wanting that class
(beyond “I need another class”). It
also helps if you do not already owe the professor work from a previous
course. Finally, if all else fails,
remember it always helps to attend the class that you are interested in until
the end of the add/drop period. This
shows the professor/instructor that you are truly interested in the course and
you mean business.
Remember
that many professors do not like to give incompletes and will only do so if
they truly believe the student had a situation that warranted the extra
time. Honor that instructor’s belief in
your ability by completing the work as soon as you can rather than waiting
until the end of the next semester or blowing it of completely. Incompletes turn into “F” after a full
following semester.
Think of
professors’ as more than lectures, they may also be mentors and career
advisors. This is also true with many
staff members on camps.
Keep
appointments and call ahead to post-pone or cancel an appointment. You may need them for a letter of
recommendation for graduate school or employment in a few years.
Keep
in mind that faculty and staff members who seem to be nagging you now may
actually be concerned about, and dedicated to your academic success and
personal well being in the future.
Do not
hesitate to take on a tutor, it is not a reflection of intellectual ability; it
just means that you need some extra assistance in some courses.
Apply
for your work-study positions early rather than waiting until the second or
third week of school. Consider
employment in various areas of campus to expand your pool of potential letter
of recommendations
PEER MENTORING WITH NICKAYA FOSTER
Nikaya
is looking to build a relationship with students who may be in academic
jeopardy, or students who have social needs. She is willing to answer questions regarding the university,
help with assignments and give tips to make life at UMASS a little easier. For more information e-mail: Nickaya33@aol.com Any
student interested in participating in a peer-mentoring program should
contact Nickaya Foster. Nickaya is
a senior psychology major and has been at the university for four
years. She has lived on campus in
Chadbourne Hall all four years.
Nickaya would like to help any student learn the ways of the
university. She would also like to
share her experiences and give advise to those seeking a little guidance.
A LETTER FROM THE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR
Dear Community Members,
It
has been some time since NASSS or JWECC have offered a newsletter. We thought it be good to reintroduce the
newsletter with hopes that you will find it helpful for staying abreast of
events, workshops and services that we offer. I also hope you consider sending
in contributions for the newsletter. We are looking for poetry, essays
regarding a topic of mutual interest in Indian country, news, pictures, and
drawings to enhance the look and feel of the newsletter. Please be sure to sign
off on your work so that we can give you the credit that you deserve for your
submission. It would also help to have your most direct access digits so that
we can let you know when your submission will be appearing. Right now, we have planned to have one issue
per semester, but if the response is good we can either offer two issues a
semester or an issue for each month. If
we go up to one a month then maintaining the newsletter can grow into a student
work-study position.
Congratulations
to our December graduate Lynn Clere and Jacqueline Campos. We plan to formally
acknowledge your accomplishment at the upcoming NASA spring social and our next
annual Pow Wow in September. Please be sure to stay in touch with us and to
forward your permanent home address or new mailing address. Also please know that you may contact us for
letters of recommendation for employment and or graduate school.
I
also want to congratulate our current seniors, you have accomplished much and
have so many things to consider and prepare for as a senior. Please do not
hesitate to let us know if we can assist you. I look forward to seeing you at
commencement in May! We have graduate
students who have been and continue to make major accomplishments. Please, feel free to forward news clippings
and or announcements about your defenses, presentations, publications etc... We
want to share the news with the rest of the community. The same applies to all of the members of
the UMASS Native community and the Pioneer Valley Native community.
We
are in the mist in planning some exiting events for the spring and fall 2004
semesters (as you will read about in the newsletter). Please send in ideas for other programming! We appreciate
feedback and input. In addition, Prof. Welburn and I will be setting up a date
to present an info session on our endeavor to raise endowments for our
programs. Most likely this will take
place mid-semester. Please be on the look out for this announcement.
Finally,
continue to be on the look out for those mysterious Joyce’s trivia questions
that may appear in memos, flyers or even the newsletter. Two NASSS students won assistance with
obtaining some of their books for the spring semester! (I will purchase the
books for them so that the bursars and financial aide office do not consider
this a financial award.) Future prizes may be movie passes, gift certificates
for a meal at a local restaurant, CDS, or DVDS, etc… so read, attend and play!
Joyce
Vincent
Associate
Director
Page 5
FOCUS
ON THE NORTHEAST PRESENTS SPRING 2004 SPEAKER
SERIES February 19
– Linda Coombs (Aquinnah Wampanoag) Director, Hobbamock’s Village, Plimoth
Plantation - “Tracking Squanto Through
Hidden Histories”: Interpreting Native Issues in a museum Setting March 4 –
Tom Porter (Mohawk) March 25 –
Trudie Lamb-Richmond (Schaghticoke) Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research
Center April 8 –
Catherine Martin (MI’KMAQ) “Sprit
of Annie Mae” April 29 –
Jean Foggo Simon (St David’s Island, Bermuda Indian) ’There Voices Are Not Silent” – The
St. David’s Island THURSDAYS
2:30-5:30 TOBIN HALL The Mohegan tribe will be hosting their
annual social on April 25 from 1pm-5pm. Finally, spring brings the beginning of
the Powwow season. Dartmouth College and Cornell University usually host their
annual Powwows sometime in May. So make sure your academics are on track
and get ready to POW WOW! Please let Joyce know if you are
interested. The Mashantucket Pequot will be hosting a
few more socials this winter. The
dates or the remaining socials are February 14 & March 13, 2004. The Aquinnah Wampanoag will be hosting
their annual social the 3rd Sunday of April. The NASSS office is working on bringing the female Native
American singing group ULALI to UMASS in late March. The date and time of their performance
will be announced at a later date. There will be a trip to Holy
Cross, Cantor Art Gallery in Worcester on February 21, to visit the
exhibit, Vision Quest: Men, Women, and sites of
the Sioux Nation.
ALTERNATIVE
SPRING BREAK NASSS
offered its first Alternative Spring Break trip last year. Participants had the opportunity to
visit the Occaneechee Band of Saponi in Hillsboro North Carolina. In addition to performing community
service they also conducted a college awareness seminar at the tribal
council office. They also spent
time learning about Occaneechee history from various community elders and
tribal council members. If you are in good academic standing (2.5
or better), have been active in NASSS/JWECC and CPANIS, and would be
interested in being considered for this years trip (same location); please
write a one page essay indicating why you would be interested in
participating. Don’t forget to
include all skills your have to offer (i.e. driving, peer mentoring,
carpentry, cleaning, etc.) Please
submit your essay to Joyce Vincent no later than 5 P.M. on Tuesday,
February 17, 2004. Due to planning
and financial needs we must limit the number of participants to six. IN
THE WORKS FOR APRIL
15-18 FROM
ALICE NASH Harley
Erdman in the Theater Dept. is producing and opera (or at least a “musical
production”) about Eunice Williams.
He has made several trips up to Kahnawake, together with the
composer and finally with the producer.
They have made good contacts (thanks to Brian Deer) and so far
impressed people with their respectful manner and talent. One nice development is that, instead of
trying to PC-himself to death by trying to speak FOR Kanienkehaka people,
Harley and his collaborators are finding ways to bring people from
Kahnawake down to Deerfield so that there can be more of a public dialogue One project is to bring a group of
student singers from the Kahnawake Survival School to UMass, April
15-18. They will have an
opportunity to perform at UMass, to see the next major workshop of the
production (so Harley can incorporate feedback), and attend a panel
discussion about it. It would be good for the KSS students to
spend time with our Native students at UMass and to get a taste of campus
life. Also it would be good for
UMass students who are interested to attend the workshop and panel discussion
as well 
Native American Student Support Services
11
Bartlett Hall – 130 Hicks Way
Phone
–413-577-0980
Fax–
413-577-0950
Email
– Native@acad.umass.edu
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