The Land
The University of Minnesota-Twin Cities is built within the traditional homelands of the Daḳota people. Minnesota comes from the Daḳota name for this region, Mni Sota Maḳoce — "the land where the waters reflect the skies."
Each day students, faculty, staff and community members who use our services look out our windows to the Ḣaḣa Wakpa, the River of the Waterfalls.
The Circle of Indigenous Nations recognizes the original peoples of this place and makes ongoing efforts to educate the campus community about the ongoing relationship that Daḳota people have to this area.
-Iyekiyapiwiŋ Darlene St. Clair, Bdewakaŋtuŋwaŋ Daḳota
Mission
The Circle of Indigenous Nations recruits, retains, and graduates American Indian/First Nations/Alaskan Native students by promoting cultural values that help indigenous students become self-directed, excel academically, and succeed in all areas of individual matriculation, academic pursuits, and career aspirations. In addition, it strives to bridge the richness of the surrounding American Indian communities with the strengths of the University’s research, education, and teaching.
Culture & Goals
The Circle of Indigenous Nations fosters an environment that allows students to feel a sense of community on campus. It contributes to the strengthening and development of all students through culturally specific services and activities by:
- Developing quality programs that support Indigenous students
- Strengthening Indigenous students in their academic development
- Maintaining Indigenous cultural and individual identities
- Preserving and utilizing Indigenous history and culture
- Build effectiving relationships with campus resources
Services
Tutoring
For Ojibwe and Dakota languages
Advice & Support
For your academic, personal, and cultural goals
Career Information
For students seeking employment, internship, and volunteer opportunities
Funding Opportunities
For students seeking scholarships, internships, and grants
Contact Us
Monday - Friday | 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
coin@umn.edu | 612-624-2555 | Fax: 612-626-7840
322 Appleby Hall, 128 Pleasant Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455
Dakota Sacred Sites Tours
Spring: Friday, April 17, 2020
12 pm to 4 pm
Registration will go live two weeks prior to the event.
Where:
Behind Appleby Hall (128 Pleasant Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455) on the East River Parkway. The bus will leave by 12:00 pm (noon).
What:
"We are living, learning, and working in a particular place with a long, fascinating, troubling, and frequently unknown story.
One goal for this tour is that participants begin to experience the place we live in as Mnisota Makoce, the Dakota homelands. We will be visiting several Dakota sacred sites located in an area that would later be called the Twin Cities.How has colonization impacted Dakota use and access to these places?
How have Dakota people asserted a continuing relationship with these places? This tour will provide participants with a more nuanced and complicated understanding of the place we call home."
– Iyekiyapiwin (Darlene St. Clair, Associate Professor, St. Cloud State University)
Please note that there will be some light walking on the tour. For disability accommodations, please contact Jillian Rowan at the Circle of Indigenous Nations at 612-624-0564 or berkl002@umn.edu.
Campus Connections:
- American Indian Culture House (AICH)
- American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES)
- American Indian Student Cultural Center (AISCC)
- Department of American Indian Studies
- Events Calendar - Coming Soon
- Native American Law Student Association
- Native American Medicine Gardens
Off-Campus Connections:
Staff Contact: Jillian Rowan
Senior Coordinator of the Circle of Indigenous Nations
612-624-0564
322 Appleby Hall
berkl002@umn.edu
