Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies Programs

William Alexander. Indian Village, Point Mudge. 1798.
William Alexander. Indian Village, Point Mudge. 1798. Vault Oversize Ayer Art Alexander, Drawing No. 21.

The D’Arcy McNickle Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies draws on the Newberry’s remarkable collections in American Indian and indigenous studies and the resources of the center to support its mission and offer programs to scholars, teachers, tribal historians, and others interested in the field. The center sponsors the American Indian Studies Seminar Series, which gathers scholars in the library to discuss papers based on work in progress.

In June 2008, the Newberry inaugurated the Newberry Consortium in American Indian Studies. The consortium offers an annual workshop, summer institute, conference, as well as fellowships to graduate students and faculty at member institutions. Learn more about the American Indian Studies Seminar Series, the NCAIS Spring Workshop in Research Methods, the NCAIS Graduate Student Conference, and the NCAIS Summer Institute.

The D’Arcy McNickle Center frequently hosts summer institutes exploring topics in American Indian and Indigenous Studies. Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, these institutes feature guest lecturers in American Indian studies, American history, art history, and literature, as well as Newberry staff experts in American Indian materials in several collections, including visual arts and cartography. Learn more about the NEH Summer Programs.

Upcoming Programs

Monday, July 8, 2013 to Friday, August 2, 2013
NCAIS Summer Institute
Competing Narratives : Native American and Indigenous Studies Across Disciplines

This four week summer institute will compare competing narratives as they relate to indigenous studies. How does the historiographic narrative interact and compete with traditional oral narratives for authority within the academy and in our communities? What do we learn by comparing the dynamics of literary narratives with those of traditional folklore?

Friday, July 19, 2013 to Saturday, July 20, 2013
NCAIS Graduate Student Conference
Call for Papers

The Consortium offers graduate students from NCAIS member institutions an opportunity to present papers in any academic field relating to American Indian Studies at the Graduate Student Conference.  We encourage the submission of proposals for papers that examine a wide variety of subjects relating to American Indian and Indigenous history and culture broadly conceived.