Community

The state of Minnesota sits within the homelands of the Dakota and Ojibwe people. Seven Ojibwe reservations and four Dakota communities constitute the state’s eleven federally-recognized tribes. The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul are home to one of the largest urban American Indian populations in the US, and they support a thriving community of Native artists, writers, musicians, activists, scholars, and chefs. American Indian activism ignited in the Twin Cities with the founding of the American Indian Movement in the late 1960’s. This spirit of activism continues today, and the Franklin Avenue American Indian Cultural Corridor in Minneapolis is testament to the strong indigenous presence in the Twin Cities.

The Department of American Indian Studies is the co-host of the American Indian Cultural House, a Living Learning Community for American Indian students attending their first year at the University of Minnesota. The house is located at Pioneer Hall in the heart of the east bank campus.
 
Our student organizations, the Dakota Language Society and the Ojibwe Language Society, both host weekly language tables in the Minneapolis Indian community throughout the academic year. These language tables have grown through the years and have been established in other communities around Minnesota.

Community Engagement
We engage our students with
our campus and our community.

Since 1994, the Department of American Indian Studies has hosted the Minnesota Indian Affairs electronic listserv, which serves Indian communities throughout the state as a tool for sharing news, community announcements, and employment and educational opportunities. You can email Wesley Ballingerfor more information at balli016@umn.edu.