You may have read the news that the University at Albany has decided to rename its Indian Quad residence hall as Indigenous Quad.
In a story published in the Times Union on March 5, 2021, Larry Rulison wrote, "UAlbany officials received a student petition in June asking that Indian Quad be renamed Indigenous Quad and also to create a task force that would identify and rename other buildings and campus landmarks that evoke racism." Read story
Following up on that news, the campus invites the community to learn more from some of the leading scholars and voices from Indigenous communities in the Northeast.
Please join us for this online discussion.
Indigenous Peoples of the Northeast: Past, Present and Future
Speakers Kay Olan, Mohawk Storyteller & Teacher
Heather Bruegl, Director of Cultural Affairs, Stockbridge Munsee Community
Dr. Joseph Bruchac, Abenaki Storyteller & Author, Greenfield Center Press, Ndakinna Education Center
Dr. Maeve Kane, UAlbany History professor. moderator for the event
12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Monday, April 26.
Kay Olan, Mohawk Storyteller & Teacher
Kay Olan (Ionataie:was), a Mohawk educator and storyteller, taught elementary school in New York State for more than 33 years. During that time, she was often asked to tell the stories that were passed down through the oral tradition of her people and to give cultural presentations about the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) to various community, school and college groups. Upon retiring from teaching, she moved to Kanatsiohareke, a traditional Mohawk Community located in central New York State.
She lived and worked there for almost three years coordinating and promoting culturally related conferences, lectures, workshops and programs including the Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Language Immersion Program.
Heather Bruegl, Director of Cultural Affairs, Stockbridge Munsee Community
A member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin and first line descendant Stockbridge Munsee, is a graduate of Madonna University in Michigan and holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in U.S. History.
Dr. Joseph Bruchac, Abenaki Storyteller & Author, Greenfield Center Press, Ndakinna Education Center
As a professional teller of the traditional tales of the Adirondacks and the Native peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Joe Bruchac has performed widely in Europe and throughout the United States.
He founded the Greenfield Review Literary Center and The Greenfield Review Press, and has published more than 120 books for children and adults, including the best-selling Keepers of the Earth: Native American Stories and Environmental Activities for Children series.
The NYS Writers Institute supports local, independent booksellers. You may purchase Keepers of the Earth at the Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza.
The event is sponsored by The University Life Council and The University Senate with gracious support from the Officer of the University President, Departments of Anthropology, English, and History. Co-Sponsored by The Albany Green Scene, Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Intercultural Engagement
and Equity, the New York Writers Institute, and the Institute for Global Indigeneity.
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