AIR Tutorial AIR Birch A  


"Our mission is the promotion and success of American Indians within education."

 
   
AIR Sr. Fall 2011

AIR Fall 2011 begins a very special academic year for us as we introduce many new concepts that we are trying to implement for our Native students for their success towards higher education. This semester we introduce our Recrutment and Retention Specialist who will work with our Seniors to prepare them for their applications to institutions of higher education. We also continue to bring our academic workshops/services/methodology to our program in hopss that our students will can garner greater confidence in themselves as they look at thier own cultures and are empowered to take on academics within school.
Truly, we begin a special year for the AIR Program.

 
AIR Group Shot M4
     
Meeting 1 (USD-AIR Sr. Start)
   
     
M1 group session
 

This last Fall (2011), we introduced the topic of Historic Cultural Sites: Culture and food traditions. This continues our research on historic cultural sites and preservation as we research how the location of these sites created and shaped tribal cultural viewpoints and how tribes existed within the regional environment.This is significant, as location dictates how we gather foods sources, how structures are created and built, how significant sites hold sacred significance and much more.

But beyond our natuve cultural topic, this semester, we saw an extrodinary amount of local and National Leaders taking part within our program. Truly, we are very fortunate to have this much support. Again, and we cant say this enough, the true backbone of our program rests on those future leaders, our mentors, who volunteer their time to see our students through their academic journey.

     
M1 Student-Mentor
 
Overall Group
     
Group Shot
 
M1 student group
     
Meeting 2 (SDSU-Culture, historical sites and how our ancestors lived)
   
     
Workshop
 
Exercise
     
Guest Speaker
 
Group in session
     
Meeting 3: (Kumeyaay-Ipai Interpretive Center at Pauwai)
   
     
Plant life
 
Grinding Holes
     
Plant Life
 
Hike in Poway
     
Discussion
 
Hike
     
Meeting 4 (USD-Winona LaDuke Lecture)
   
     

We had a change in plans and deviation from our schedule. AIR Programs had an extrodinary opportunity to meet and listen to Activist and Community Leader, Winona LaDuke, whose efforts has led to National changes on environmental rights, Tribal Rights, and support of many Tribal Nations through her Native Non-Profit Organization.

Winona activism led the developement of the White Earth Land Recovery Project to recover lands originally included in the White Earth Indian Reservation by an 1867 treaty. These lands had been allotted to individual households under the Nelson Act and later sold to non-Natives. The non-profit is also working on reforestation of reservation lands, and markets traditional products, including wild rice harvested by the tribe.

Winona LaDuke is required reading in many Polictial Science Courses that deal with Environmental Justice/Politics, including at San Diego State University.

We are very fortunate that this semester we have had a lot of great lecturer that included CILS Executive Director, USD Law Professor on Legal constructs of indigenous peoples, Professors from SDSU and USD on land issues and traditional foods, and even a few upcoming community leaders.

 
Mentor discussion
     
Mentor meeting
 
Winona LaDuke
     
Meeting 5 (UCSD-Library Research)
   
     
Group SHot
 
Library
     
Workshop 1
 
Michelle Jacob
     
General Meeting
 
Workshop 2
     
Meeting 6 (USD-Presentation Preparation)
   
     
Group Session 1
 
Group Discussion 2
     
Guest Speaker
 
Guest Speaker
     
Financial AId
 
Closing
     
Meeting 7 (USD-Pulling it all together)
   
     
Guest Speaker
 
Workshop
     
Presentation Prep
 
     
Meeting 7 (USD-Presentations/Thank you)    
     
Presentations
 
Michelle Coordination
     
Group Shot
 
Presentation