Indigenous Studies launches new home/hub space

The Department of Indigenous Studies has officially launched a newly dedicated space in Clemens Hall for the Indigenous Studies Home/Hub — space designed to increase Indigenous faculty and student retention and success, and foster community-building at UB and in the broader Indigenous community.

President Satish K. Tripathi, Provost A. Scott Weber, College of Arts and Sciences Dean Robin Schulze and dozens of faculty, staff, students and Haudenosaunee community advisory members attended the recent ribbon-cutting event.

In addition to the newly renovated reception area, guests were encouraged to explore the updated and central gathering space, digital archive lab and the Food Sovereignty Kitchen.

“I am excited about the opening of our Food Sovereignty Kitchen, which will allow us to holistically teach Indigenous studies,” said department chair Mishuana Goeman, Tonawanda Band of Seneca. “This space is critical. If you look at past photos, you’ll see how we used to make do with classroom and floor space to do our corn work in Mia McKie’s Introduction to Haudenosaunee Language and Culture class.

“Now, we finally have a proper counter and workspace for beading classes, cooking demonstrations and hands-on learning that aligns with our commitment to land-based and community learning,” Goeman said.

“Our kitchen will be a gathering place where we can learn from each other, greet community members, have language classes while we prep traditional foods and hold seminars.”

The new space represents a profound step forward in Indigenous research, education and community-building at UB.

“This is a great day for the department, for the college and especially for the students, faculty, staff and community as we celebrate the culmination of years of work and commitment to make this amazing facility possible,” Schulze said.

Indigenous Studies has been moving at full throttle since receiving a $3.2 million Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant in 2020. The Mellon Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports arts, culture and humanities, and is the largest private source of funding in the United States for these fields. This prestigious grant continues to foster research, recruit Indigenous faculty and students, and deepen UB’s engagement with local Indigenous Nations and communities.

“This dedicated space supports Indigenous inclusion and offers a central location where students can gather, study, dialogue, build relationships, hold events, host Indigenous community members and access support staff and resources,” Goeman said.

Since receiving the grant, Indigenous Studies has continued to build on more than 50 years of Indigenous research that began with the work of John Mohawk, a founder of UB’s Native American Studies program in 1972 and one of the foremost Haudenosaunee scholars of his generation. Indigenous Studies, which officially became a department in 2023, also implemented a new major in fall 2024.

The new central space also includes a digital archive lab called HARK (Haudenosaunee Archive, Research and Knowledge), a public-facing digital platform that functions as an aggregator of digital content featuring projects, websites, content management systems, cultural heritage materials, and archive and resource collections developed by and for Haudenosaunee people and communities. The portal is being developed by a team from the Department of Indigenous Studies led by faculty members Theresa L. McCarthy, McKie and Goeman, with digital archivist Waylon Wilson.

“I am incredibly excited about this new era for Indigenous Studies. We are always supposed to be working for the coming faces and our future generations, and here at UB that means working for our current and prospective graduate and undergraduate students,” said McCarthy (Six Nations Onondaga, Beaver Clan), associate professor of Indigenous studies and director of the Indigenous UB Hub.

The word Haudenosaunee translates to “they build the house,” although it is often interpreted as “people of the longhouse.”

“This term reflects our tradition of always being able to extend the rafters of the house, incorporating new people, families and nations,” McCarthy said. “Extending the rafters is a metaphor for our long-standing tradition of building relationships and fostering unity. Extending the rafters is also an expression of our tradition of building good relations in general.”

At the time of the Confederacy’s formation, the Haudenosaunee agreed to end warfare among each other and came together in unity, establishing the Great Peace among its nations.

“Our ancestors buried their weapons beneath a Great White Pine, and the tree became an important symbol of our laws of peace and strength in unity,” McCarthy explained. “The roots of the White Pine extend to the north, south, east and west. The White Roots of Peace teaching acknowledges that anyone can follow these roots and take shelter under the tree if they agree to uphold our values of peace, respect and friendship. Those laws are central to how I think about this space and who can take shelter with us here.”

Added Goeman: “These principles shape the vision for the Department of Indigenous Studies, reinforcing its commitment to Indigenous knowledge and research on a global scale.”

The innovative concept of a home/hub model creates social science- and humanities-centered learning and research opportunities, educational programs and outreach in service to Indigenous communities in ways that increase public understanding and inspire public education about the history, contributions, knowledge, traditions and contemporary realities of Indigenous people. In addition to housing the Department of Indigenous Studies, the home/hub serves the broader needs of Indigenous inclusion, connecting it to both the university community and the wider communities of Western New York and Southern Ontario.

The home/hub structure aims to contribute to Indigenous faculty and student retention and success. It aims to provide Indigenous faculty and students with a locus of support on campus, as well as space for Indigenous staff dedicated to the well-being of Indigenous students. It fosters community-building among Indigenous students and scholars on campus, providing space, services and opportunities for dialogue, interaction and networking.

“We are hosting many wonderful events and bringing amazing Indigenous research from around the world to UB,” Goeman said. “The department hopes to touch all on campus one way or the other, and that people will visit us and join us in learning more.”

The home/hub helps build community at UB for Indigenous students, faculty, staff and surrounding Indigenous communities with programming that looks to help cultivate a community in which Indigenous people feel welcomed.

“We look to serve all Indigenous people across the campus while also spreading awareness to the UB community and surrounding areas,” McCarthy said.