Native Americans in Allied Health Sciences 

• Date: November 1-10
• Location: McKinley Health Center (1109 S. Lincoln Ave., Urbana)

The McKinley Health Center has curated a Native American Heritage Month display amplifying Native Peoples in allied health sciences. Visit the display and learn about the incredible and enduring contributions Native Peoples make to the system of care networks.

Prison Book Donation Drive  

• Date: November 1- November 30
• Location: Native American House (1206 W Nevada St., Urbana)

The purpose of this program is to provide incarcerated Native and Indigenous individuals with fiction and non-fiction reading materials, including DVDs, related to the history, culture, languages, traditions, art, and worldviews of Native and Indigenous Peoples. The Native American House will be accepting donations throughout Native American Heritage Month. This program is a collaboration between Erin Cheslow (Ph.D., Candidate, American Indian Studies, Department of English) and the Native American House.

Community Meet & Greet: Drs. Heather J. Shotton and Stephanie J. Waterman, Visiting Native Higher Education Scholars 

• Date: October 31
• Time: 8:30- 10:00am
• Location: Native American House (1206 W Nevada St., Urbana)

For many Indigenous Peoples, feeding the community, especially guests, fosters connections and serves as an act of respect, responsibility, and reciprocity. We invite members of the campus community to share a meal with our visiting Native higher education scholars.

Beyond the Asterisk: New Scholarship and Frameworks for Understanding Native Students in Higher Education 

• Date: October 31
• Time: 12:15-1:30pm
• Location: Room 22, College of Education (1310 S 6th St., Champaign)

Dr. Heather J. Shotton (Wichita & Affiliated Tribes, and Kiowa and Cheyenne descent), Ft. Lewis College; Dr. Stephanie J. Waterman (Onondaga, Turtle Clan), University of Toronto 

Beyond the Asterisk: Understanding Native Students in Higher Education is a text that emerged from the lack of knowledge in student affairs about Native American college student experiences. Since its publication in 2013, Beyond the Asterisk has become a primer for Non-Native colleges and universities to become Native student-ready. Ten years later, in a follow-up edited book, New Scholarship and Frameworks for Understanding Native Students in Higher Education, many of the 2013 authors, plus new Indigenous scholars, explore the advances in the field of Indigenous higher education and new research since 2013. Join two of the editors as they address expanded topics from the book. 

This event will be livestreamed at the following link.

Co-sponsor: College of Education

Trivia Tuesdays 

• Date: October 31
• Time: 7:00pm
• Location: Courtyard Cafe, Illini Union (1401 W. Green St., Urbana)

NAH staff will facilitate a round of Trivia Tuesdays, participants will have the opportunity to win prizes based on their knowledge of the Indigenous community.

Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World 

• Date: November 7
• Time: 4:00- 6:00pm
• Location: Carr Conference Room 111B, Pennsylvania Avenue Residence Halls (PAR) 

At 4 p.m., join the Native American House as they host a viewing of Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World. Snacks will be provided, and all are welcome!

Native-themed Meal 

• Date: November 7
• Time: 4:00- 8:30pm
• Location: Pennsylvania Avenue Residence Halls (PAR) 

In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, University Housing will bring a taste of Native food flavors to PAR.  

Indigenous Men in Higher Education  

• Date: November 8
• Time: 12:00- 1:00pm
• Location: Room 314A, Illini Union (1401 W Green St., Urbana)

Dr. Johnny Poolaw (Delaware, Chiricahua Apache, Comanche, Kiowa), Director of Student Success, American Indian Science and Engineering Society 

Dr. Poolaw will speak to the issues and concerns surrounding Indigenous men having their voices heard in higher education. By understanding the voices and the experiences of Indigenous men, scholars, and practitioners can better understand and engage with Indigenous men on their campus, thereby increasing access, matriculation, success, and persistence during their collegiate journeys.  

Co-sponsor: Gender & Sexuality Resource Center 

AISES Meet & Greet with Dr. Poolaw  

• Date: November 8
• Time: 5:30pm
• Location: Native American House (1206 W Nevada St., Urbana)

Dr. Johnny Poolaw (Delaware, Chiricahua Apache, Comanche, Kiowa), Director of Student Success, American Indian Science and Engineering Society 

Dr. Poolaw will share scholarship information, internship opportunities, and other impactful STEM-related initiatives available to students who are AISES members. Food will be provided. For more information, please contact David Eby (Choctaw/Muscogee Creek), Native American House Ambassador, at davidme2@illinois.edu.

Exploring Indigenous Perspectives on Art and Imagery 

• Date: November 9
• Time: 6:00-7:30pm
• Location: East Gallery, Krannert Art Museum (500 E. Peabody Dr., Champaign)

Join Krannert Art Museum for a panel discussion of indigenous perspectives on art and imagery in conjunction with Storywork: The Prints of Marie Watt from the Collections of Jordan Schnitzer and his Family Foundation in partnership with University Galleries, University of San Diego. Multimedia artist Marie Watt is a storyteller. As a member of the Seneca Nation (one of six that comprise the Haudenosaunee Confederacy) with German-Scots ancestry, her stories draw from Native and non-Native traditions: Greco-Roman myth, pop music and Pop art, Indigenous oral narratives, Star Wars and Star Trek

Sponsor: Krannert Art Museum 

Indigenous Motherhood in the Academy 

• Date: November 13
• Time: 12:00- 1:00pm
• Location: Women’s Resources Center (616 E. Green St., #202, Champaign)

Dr. Charlotte E. Davidson (Diné/Three Affiliated Tribes - Mandan, Hidatsa & Arikara), Native American House, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign 

Dr. Davidson’s presentation focuses on “A Hidden Cartography: Navigating the Non-matrilineal Terrain of Academe,” a chapter featured in the edited book Indigenous Motherhood in the Academy. Dr. Davidson explores the lived experiences of her matrilineal relatives and narrates how they serve as living landscapes promoting womb-based ways of relating. Her talk ends with a discussion about enlivening matrilineal sensibilities within male-normed higher education settings. 

Sponsor: Women’s Resources Center 

Native-themed Meal 

• Date: November 14
• Time: 4:00- 8:30pm
• Location: Ikenberry Dining Center (IKE) 

In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, University Housing will bring a taste of Native food flavors to IKE.  

Hazhó’ó Ałhił Na’nish: Utilizing Local Community Knowledge and Resources as a Guide for Program Planning, Teaching and Research 

• Date: November 14
• Time: 5:00- 6:00pm
• Location: SDRP 2025A Multipurpose Room, Ikenberry Dining Center (IKE) 

Dr. Oliver Tapaha (Diné), Postdoctoral Research Associate, College of Education 

Dr. Tapaha will share the importance of building a community to (re)establish circles of relationships and re-center the true meaning of belonging. He will also explain how stories, cultures, histories, experiences, perspectives, and lifeways of local knowledge-holders can serve as a tool to (re)shape an organization’s structures and practices or influence a scholar’s teaching and research. 

Rock Your Mocs! 

• Date: November 15
• Time: All Day
• Location: Everywhere

Established in 2011, Rock Your Mocs is an annual and global social media event. The Native American House (NAH) encourages Native/Indigenous Peoples to wear their moccasins, take a photo, upload a post onto the NAH Facebook page (@The Native American House) or NAH Instagram (@nah_illinois), and use the hashtags #UIUCRocksMocs.

Native American Tribal Geneaology 

• Date: November 16
• Time: 6:00- 7:00pm
• Location: Zoom
• Registration: https://urbanafreelibrary.libnet.info/event/9181903 

Join Genealogist Rick Fogarty (Muscogee Creek) to learn about Native American geneaology. He will guide you through the history of tribal and governmental recordkeeping and where these records currently exist. He will also discuss the current state of DNA testing and its uses in tribal research. Whether you are actively researching a tribe or have curiosity about this unique area of research, there will be relevant information for genealogists and researchers of all scopes and skill levels. 

Sponsor: Urbana Free Library 

Native Chicago Jam 

• Date: November 27
• Time: 7:00pm
• Location: Courtyard Cafe, Illini Union (1401 W. Green St., Urbana)

The Illini Union Board invites an ensemble of Chicago-based Native musical performers as the Musical Mondays act for Native American Heritage Month. Performers include William Buchholtz (Algonquin/Métis), Mark Jourdan (Ho-Chunk/Oneida), Lanialoha Lee (Native Hawaiian), Amber Roy (Northern Paiute/M’Chigeeng Ojibwe), and Dr. Dorene Wiese (White Earth Ojibwe). 

Co-Sponsors: Illini Union Board, Native American House, American Indian Association of Illinois 

Encouragement Dinner

• Date: November 28
• Time: 5:30pm
• Location: Murphy Lounge, University YMCA (1001 S. Wright St., Champaign)

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Karen Francis-Begay (Diné), Independent Scholar & Higher Education Consultant 

Come and share a meal with us!

The Native American House invites Dr. Karen Francis-Begay to recall, reflect on, and narrate their student experiences in higher education. Karen will address topics such as adjusting to campus life, factors contributing to a sense of belonging, and accessing the right pathways toward degree completion. She will conclude her storytelling by emphasizing the value of higher education and offering words of encouragement for the Native student community at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign.  

Between Virtual Roles and Sovereign Worlds: Tribal Advisors in Historically White Institutions  

• Date: November 29
• Time: 12:00- 1:00pm
• Location: Room 314A, Illini Union (1401 W Green St., Urbana)

Dr. Karen Francis-Begay (Diné), Independent Scholar & Higher Education Consultant 

Dr. Francis-Begay will share perspectives of tribal advisors representing different historically white institutions across the western United States who participated in her dissertation. The research questions of the study focused on the institutions’ understanding of sovereignty and the tribal advisor’s role of embedding an awareness of sovereignty and Native Nation building. She will share strategies tribal advisors use for negotiating tensions experienced within the institution, key findings from the study, and conclude with implications for practice and future research. 

Catered lunch will be provided!

Honoring the Spirit of Relation + Kinship with our Two-Spirit and LGBTQ+ Relatives 

• Date: November 30
• Time: 12:15- 1:15pm
• Location: Room 22, College of Education (1310 S. 6th St., Champaign)

Charlie Amáyá Scott, Doctoral Candidate, University of Denver 

Our Two-Spirit and LGBTQ+ Relatives have experienced the worst of settler colonialism. Yet, despite such a dismal reality, our Two-Spirit and LGBTQ+ Relatives have chosen to resist and celebrate their own brilliance. Join this conversation and witness the significance of our Two-Spirit Relative’s (re)emergence and guidance on how to support our LGBTQ+ Relatives navigating higher education. 

Co-Sponsor: Gender & Sexuality Resource Center