Watch a video of groundbreaking ceremonies at the University of Montana's Native American Center.“Community is the foundation of identity,” Cajete said. It is the place where one comes to know what it is to be Native, said the author and educator, who provided a keynote speech before more than 300 people who gathered in the frosty morning shadow of Mount Sentinel. His audience arrived to celebrate a groundbreaking ceremony marking a first-of-its-kind Native campus center in the United States.
“The commemoration of the Indian studies center here at the University of Montana is so important to the overall development and evolution of Native studies, nationally, as well as internationally,” said Cajete, the Native American Studies director at the University of New Mexico. It will provide “a new expression of indigenous community,” he said.
Major donors, tribal leaders, politicians, students and community members shared tobacco offerings and stories about what the new center means to current and future generations. Speakers also acknowledged past generations, namely the Salish and Pend d'Oreille people, who once had an established community on what is now the sprawling UM campus.
Every speaker agreed more needs to be done to recognize the tribal knowledge that has sustained Native people for thousands of years. The task will get a boost from a proposed pantheon of tribal initiatives to be housed in the Native American Center.
“Over the years, the university has developed a number of programs recognizing its heritage and responsibility because of its location in the heart of Indian Country,” said UM President George Dennison. Yet, he acknowledged the university ranks 19th nationally in awarding bachelor's degrees to Native students. “We can and must do much better,” he said. “This center reflects our commitment.”
Dennison announced Saturday that the university had created a new position to solidify and strengthen Indian programs on campus. He said Kate Shanley, a citizen of the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of Montana, will become an assistant to the UM president and provost to set a new course for indigenous education on campus.
“I'm enthusiastic about the opportunity to create an overarching vision with goals and points to make ourselves more effective in serving Indian communities,” said Shanley, a UM Native studies professor.
“It will be an important position within the university,” said Provost Royce Engstrom. “We have so much energy and enthusiasm around Indian education. “It will propel us to a leadership role in the country.”
Several speakers recognized the role the center would bring in uniting communities that had historically been divided.
“This is one unique endeavor that is critically important,” said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont. “It's helping bridging the gap between Native Americans and non-Native Americans. Š We have a lot to learn from each other. We can learn so much by participating in the center.”
More than 2,000 students take Native American Studies courses on campus.
“I have a lot of non-Indian friends who are dedicated to Indian studies,” said Dustin Whitford, president of UM Kyi-Yo Native American Association.
Chief Earl Old Person of the Blackfeet Nation thanked “all those people that had the dream for a place for our young people.”
Terry Payne, a Missoula businessman, is a multimillion-dollar contributor to the center. He said he was inspired to support fundraising efforts after finding “something almost magical about it. There's such a need to recognize Native American people and to help provide this center of education for the future. My family and I are blessed to help move this project forward.”
He said he was inspired by the “tremendous amount of hope and optimism” he saw at Saturday's groundbreaking ceremony. It places Native people in a new beginning, he said.
The First Interstate Bank Foundation also is a primary contributor.
“This is another powerful example of what it means to be part of a community,” said Mike Hickey, First Interstate Bank president in Missoula. “This has been real inspirational and touching and a reminder for us who enjoy this great part of the world.”
Randy Scott, First Interstate Bank Foundation board president, said his organization supports projects people feel are “tremendous. It's great to be part of the construction of the building and what it means to the education of the Native people of Montana.”
Educator Jennifer Flat Lip of the Crow Nation told the audience the center would fulfill a state mandate. She reminded people of Montana's unique educational responsibility among all states in that it has the only state constitution in the country with a mandate to teach and preserve Native history to all Montana K-12 students.
“Now we have a leader,” she said. “It's the best thing happening to the University of Montana. Thank you for giving our students a chance to be their selves, to be credentialed and heard throughout the world.”
Anyone who participates in the center will find a place to express themselves. The center and its programs will help students find their faith and heart, to become complete human beings, said Cajete.
Everyone should be honored for what they contribute to their communities. “Community,” he said, “is the heart of identity.”
Reach reporter Jodi Rave at 406-523-5299 or jodi.rave@lee.net.
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