American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program at Cornell University

Meet the President and Vice President of our Indigenous Graduate Students Association this year! Aloha! My name is?Aspen?Omapang and I am a Filipino descendent of kama?āina of Hawai?i Island. My family originates from the Visayan region of the Philippines before migrating due to the sugar cane trade to Kohala on the Big Island, which has been our home for generations. I come from sugar cane workers, paniolos (Hawaiian cowboys), cooks, lauhala weavers, and teachers. Hawai?i is where my family, relations, and kuleana (obligations) are. I am a fifth year PhD candidate in the Information Science department where I study the political participation and legibility of Kānaka Maoli (Native Hawaiians) to the US government. Currently, I am the President of the Indigenous Graduate Student Association (IGSA) here at Cornell. To be honest, I didn’t show up to IGSA events until my third year because I was so unsure of my identity and belongingness in these spaces. However, I was brought into IGSA events with warmth by the powerful, inspirational leadership of past IGSA E-boards. I have found a deep sense of community unlike anywhere else in Ithaca and have been given the grace and time (and food!) to grow into myself over the years. This year, I am grateful to have the opportunity to return the goodwill I have received to new and returning Indigenous grads. So, please email us, join our events, and become a part of our community! Contact email:?[email protected] ----------------------------------- "Yá'át'ééh! My name is?Crystal?Rain Fowler (she/her). I am mostly Diné and some Ute and Zuni. My family is from the southwest of the US, specifically the Navajo Nation Reservation. My mother’s clan is Near the Water and my dad’s clan is Red Palm. I graduated with my Bachelor degree from Utah State University in Biological Engineering with minors in Computer Science and Agronomy. I am now a 3rd year PhD student in Biological and Environmental Engineering. The topic of my research is investigating plant biomechanic responses in a fluid dynamic environment. I am honored to be the Vice-President of IGSA! My first year at Cornell was wrought with imposter syndrome. However, I started to attend IGSA events and I learned about the local tribes. It made me feel so much better to be around those that were familiar to the area and eat food similar to my traditional food. I will work hard this year to have fun events and create a welcoming atmosphere!"

MEET OUR AIISP STUDENT AMBASSADORS! The American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program (AIISP) provides a unique combination of American Indian and Indigenous Studies (AIIS) courses, student leadership opportunities, and an undergraduate residential experience at Akwe:kon, the first residential program house in the United States built specifically to celebrate Indigenous communities . AIISP utilizes a?full circle approach to education. We believe in the recruitment, retention, and reintroduction of our students into their respective communities. The student ambassadors will support the recruitment of prospective and admitted students to Cornell. Ambassadors will share their experiences about Cornell and AIISP with prospective high school students, transfer students, and their families. Ambassadors should have a familiarity with AIISP’s programs, staff, and events, and should strive to be honest but also speak about the benefits of attending Cornell. Learn more about our Student Ambassadors at aiisp.cornell.edu under the "Student Life" tab.

?? Join our team as a Student Success Program Manager at AISES! ?? Support college & career readiness programs, engage with students and educators, and help drive impactful initiatives. ???? Ready to make a difference? Apply now: careers.aises.org ?? #StudentSuccess #NativesInSTEM #CareerOpportunities

Three research projects led by Michael Charles '16, assistant professor in biological and environmental engineering at Cornell University, are empowering Indigenous communities across North America with data to advocate for their futures. "We're always asking how can the data or information be useful to communities as a tool for governance or advocacy?" said Charles, a citizen of the Navajo Nation. "These are numbers and data that they can use in a court trial, influencing public policy, or managing their own governance." Charles' work combines computational modeling with Indigenous advocacy, focusing on issues like the impacts of climate change and forced migration on Indigenous food systems and air pollution from mining. https://lnkd.in/gqfCrMhG

"Martina Pablo Pablo ’26 started picking coffee beans when she was five years old, on her father’s small plot of land in a remote area in Guatemala. Although her homeplace, in the mountains of?Sierra de los Cuchumatanes, has a unique microclimate that yields exceptional coffee, three-quarters of the Mam Maya people in the area suffer from poverty. Pablo Pablo’s parents and neighbors struggle to make ends meet as subsistence farmers, even as global coffee prices?have risen?65% since the beginning of 2021. Pablo Pablo, who is studying hotel administration in the Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration, is hoping to change that. She’s the creator and owner of?Martina’s Mayan Coffee, which sells coffee directly from her family farm in Todos Santos in Huehuetenango. “My hope is to empower Indigenous farmers. Inequality there is so bad. They have no power to negotiate,” she said. Her fledgling business honors the complex experiences of those who grow and harvest the coffee in her home country, and leverages the newfound entrepreneurial and marketing chops she has honed in the classroom and via mentoring." Read the Full Article: https://lnkd.in/emtAr2NB Purchase Martina's Mayan Coffee: https://lnkd.in/eQs-BfG4

?? Join our team as a Student Success Program Manager at AISES! ?? Support college & career readiness programs, engage with students and educators, and help drive impactful initiatives. ???? Ready to make a difference? Apply now: careers.aises.org ?? #StudentSuccess #NativesInSTEM #CareerOpportunities

AISES is proud to be a strategic partner of The National STEM Festival and offer the inaugural AISES Indigenous Ingenuity Award! This award recognizes the creativity, ingenuity, and technical prowess of the first scientists by honoring Indigenous students from North American tribes or the Pacific Islands who have developed research projects that answer burning questions or address real-world challenges from their communities. To be eligible for a 2025 AISES Indigenous Ingenuity Award, your concept for submission must have been entered in the 2023 or 2024 National American Indian Science and Engineering Fair (NAISEF). Recipients will receive a 5-night/6-day trip to the National STEM Festival presented by EXPLR in Washington, D.C., where winners will present their STEM project. Up to 3 awards will be given. Apply at https://lnkd.in/g2diTeg2 EXPLR Kari Byron

Kaitlin Diggins (Ihanktonwan/Yankton Sioux) is a third-year plant pathology PhD. student researching disease management strategies for specialty crops. She is also the president of the Indigenous Graduate Student Association (IGSA).

If you're in Ithaca and free tomorrow (Thursday 8/8) please join us at the Office of Inclusive Excellence 'Summer Research Symposium' in the Baker Atrium & Portico for the afternoon! Indigenous undergraduate McNair Scholars Peter Thais (Akwesasne Mohawk) and Cannon Cline (Nanticoke, Lenni Lenape) will be presenting on their summer research! SCHEDULE 12:35-1:20 in Baker Atrium - Poster Session A - ft. Peter Thais 3:50 in 294A Clark- Oral Presentation by Peter Thais 1:30-2:15pm Baker Atrium - Poster Session B. ft Cannon Cline 4:30 in 120 PSB - Oral Presentation by Cannon Cline. ----- Rising seniors Peter and Cannon are both part of the elite Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program (McNair Scholars) and are co-presidents of @aisescornell! Peter is majoring in Biological Engineering with a minor in American Indian and Indigenous Studies. Cannon is majoring in Earth and Atmospheric Science with a minor in Environment and Sustainability.

Congratulations to former AIISP Student Support Specialist Starrla Curley on her professional transition to Ongweoweh Corp! Ongweoweh and their founder Frank Bonamie (Cayuga) has been a supporter of AIISP and our predecessor the American Indian Program since the 1970s!