South Dakota State University. American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program

The American Indian and Indigenous Studies program is designed to provide students with a broadened knowledge of Indigenous values and communities in the United States. The program focuses on the past and present understanding of Indigenous people with an emphasis on making a better future for Indigenous people and this program. Course in this program focus on Indigenous histories, languages, arts, issues, sovereignty, contemporary situations. Being a small program, students can identify their interest and do undergraduate research on topics that interest them. Students that complete the American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program will receive a Bachelors of Arts Degree and can go on serve Indigenous people in tribal or federal agencies. Studying Indigenous experiences promotes understanding of Indigenous culture and helps respond to the need for multicultural awareness. In 1994 the minor changed names to the American Indian Studies minor, which is the same year Lakota language courses were starting to be offered. In 2013, South Dakota State University started offering a Bachelor of Arts in American Indian Studies under the American Indian Studies program. The major and minor still work to provide a more well-rounded understanding of American Indian experiences. In 2021, the programs name was changed to the American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program under the current American Indian Studies coordinator Mark Freeland.