Onondaga Celebrates Native American Heritage Month
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Students, faculty and staff at Onondaga are invited to participate in a series of events celebrating Native American Heritage Month in November. The College will embrace this year’s national theme: “Celebrating Tribal Nations: America’s Great Partners."
Piscataway Indian Nation Singers/Dancers
Monday, November 2
11 am – 12:30 pm
Gordon Student Center Dining Commons
The Piscataway Indian Nation Singers and Dancers travels throughout Europe, Canada and the U.S. and appeared in the blockbuster hit “Dances With Wolves.” The group also performs regularly at the Smithsonian's Museum of the American Indian, national pow-wow's, major festivals, and colleges across the country.
Lecture Series: Joanne Shenandoah
Thursday, November 5
4 pm
Storer Auditorium
Concert: Grammy Award winning artist Joanne Shenandoah
7 – 8:30 pm
Storer Auditorium
Artist Joanne Shenandoah will share her love of folk, pop and classical through ancestrally-inspired music. A Wolf Clan member of the Iroquois Confederacy, Shenandoah has performed at high-profile venues including Carnegie Hall, the White House and Woodstock ’94.
Film: “Ely Parker (Seneca): Warrior in Two Worlds” followed by a panel discussion.
Wednesday, November 11
4 – 6 pm
Whitney Applied Technology Center Room W101
Ely Parker, a member of the Seneca Nation of Indians, served as an adjutant to General Ulysses S. Grant during the Civil War and wrote the final draft of the Confederate surrender at Appomattox in 1865. A panel discussion will follow the film and discuss his story.
Native American Cuisine catered by Aramark
6 – 7 pm
Gordon Dining Commons
“In Pursuit of Sovereignty: Rethinking the Meanings of Iroquois Self-Determination in the 21st Century”
Wednesday, November 18
11:15 am – 12:15 pm
Mawhinney Hall, Room M245
Speakers include Kandice Watson, director of educational and cultural outreach, Oneida Nation; Sue Parsons, Onondaga Language Preschool Teacher, Onondaga Nation; and Jesse Jacobs, interim sachem, Beaver Clan, Onondaga Nation. Timothy Willig, assistant professor of social sciences, will moderate the discussion.
Throughout the month, Onondaga students are invited to ice skate at the Onondaga Nation Arena – also known as “Tsha'Hon'nonyen'dakhwa.” Skate dates are Nov. 7, 11 and 28 from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Students who show their Onondaga IDs will receive free admission and skate rental. The Tsha'Hon'nonyen'dakhwa is located at 326 Route 11 in Nedrow, NY.
“Over the years Onondaga Community College has implemented a number of initiatives to promote and advance knowledge of the Native American culture,” says Eunice Williams, interim associate vice president of Diversity Services/Chief Diversity Services Officer. “Celebrating Native American Heritage Month has served as only one vehicle used to educate the campus community as well as the CNY region about the Haudenosaunee’s historical, political and cultural legacies – particularly here in New York state.”
All Native American Heritage Month events are sponsored by: Arts Across Campus, Continued and Extended Learning, Diversity Services, department of general studies, Native American Student Club, Residence Life, department of social science/humanities, Student Activities, and the Teaching and Learning Center.
