The Daily Bulletin Archive

By Phyllis Camesano

Under the guidance of the School of Education, Associate Dean Lori V. Quigley, and a working group of internal and external experts, Buffalo State College continues to advance Native American curriculum and initiatives, making the campus a destination for students interested in learning about indigenous peoples.

An interdisciplinary minor in indigenous studies will be offered in 2009–2010 under the auspices of the Anthropology Department, which will house the minor. The program follows the Modern and Classical Languages Department’s introduction of Seneca as a language last semester. This month’s agenda of Native American speakers and celebrations on campus further underscores interest in indigenous peoples.

“Slowly but surely, we are building academic programs and extracurricular activities that reinforce Buffalo State as a campus that understands and advances Native American studies and culture,” said Quigley who is herself a member of the Seneca Nation. “People in my native community look to Buffalo State for academic courses and social events relevant to them. In Western New York, Buffalo State is unique in this regard.”

Last fall, Quigley and Karen O’Quin, associate dean of the School of Natural and Social Sciences, were discussing Native American studies that have been instituted during the past several years, and how to further advance the curriculum. From these conversations, a working group was formed to craft an interdisciplinary minor that draws upon the expertise of seven departments: Anthropology, History and Social Studies Education, Geography and Planning, English, Elementary Education and Reading, Modern and Classical Languages, and Communication. The minor program calls for 21 credit hours, 15 required, including an internship, independent project, or independent study related to indigenous studies.

“It is very heartwarming to see so much expertise in this important area of study and so many departments working together to expand our curriculum,” said O’Quin.

In addition to Quigley and O’Quin, faculty members participating in the working group are Lisa Marie Anselmi, Charles R. Bachman, David A. Carson, Cynthia A. Conides, Leslie K. Day, Lloyd M. Elm, Bruce L. Fisher, Dennis L. Gaffin, Deborah L. Hovland, Kathryn H. Leacock, Christopher M. Pennuto, and Ron Smith.

While this group and the establishment of the minor program are a benchmark in advancing the curriculum and formalizing expertise, there have been many events leading up to it:

• In 2004, Lori Quigley obtained approximately $3 million in grants for the Seneca Nation, including a $1.2 million grant to develop a strategic plan and training to preserve the Seneca language in cooperation with Buffalo State’s Center for Excellence in Urban and Rural Education. She also obtained a $545,000 Reading First grant for the Mount Morris School District.
• The Native American storytelling sessions and poetry of English Professor Charles Bachman are well known to the campus and community. He a recipient of the Buffalo State Native American Students Organization’s award for “outstanding promotion of Native American culture and curriculum at Buffalo State.”
• Timothy R. Ecklund, associate vice president for campus life, serves on the Governing Council of the National Institute on Native Leadership in Higher Education. He is one of three members of the council for this national organization that focuses on advancing higher education for Native Americans.
• In 2005, under the direction of chair Ron Smith, the Communication Department established the American Indian Policy and Media Initiative (AIPMI), a unique project that studies how the media covers Native American issues and works with tribes to help get their stories told. The initiative has produced or generated many publications, most recently the 225-page book Shoot the Indian: Media, Misperception and Native Truth.
• Lisa Anselmi, assistant professor of anthropology, is an archaeologist who studies Native American/First Nations technological practices. Her 2008 book, Native People’s Use of Copper-Based Metals in NE North America: Contact Period Interactions, coalesces her ongoing research into the ways that Native metalworkers used copper-based metals during the early periods of contact between Native peoples and Europeans. Anselmi also leads a biennial archaeological field school for undergraduates at Beaver Island State park on Grand Island. She and William Engelbrecht, professor emeritus of anthropology, have also presented as part of the Native American Students Organization’s Native Heritage celebration held on campus each March.
• In recognition of his educational work and community outreach, Lloyd Elm, associate professor of elementary education and reading, was chosen by the Committee on the Canandaigua Treaty of 1794 to receive a Certificate of Recognition from the Monroe County Legislature to mark the 214th year of the treaty. In 2007, Elm was recognized as “Educator of the Year” by the Native American Indian Education Association of New York.
• As an archival resource for Native American historical documents, E. H. Butler Library ranks as one of the best in New York State.