Jody O’Connor has a distinct memory from her early days at the University of Minnesota Duluth in the 1980s. Every morning on her walk across campus, she would see a custodian. They would smile and wave at one other.
That friendly gesture had a big impact on the first-generation, American Indian student. “Small things like that matter, visibility matters. That helped me to feel comfortable and got me into school for the day,” says O’Connor, who now directs UMD’s American Indian Learning Resource Center (AILRC).
The AILRC provides a “home away from home” for American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) students at UMD. This purpose remains as essential as when the center was founded four decades ago.
All college students benefit from having that sense of belonging on campus but O’Connor notes that community is especially sacred to Indigenous students, who tend to prioritize their families before their education. This point became especially salient during the pandemic when UMD AI/AN undergraduate enrollment declined by 9.9 percent.
The center caters to a mix of students. Some had a cultural upbringing, and some are now learning about their culture. They are often the first in their families to attend college. The AILRC team has been working to reinvigorate the center post-pandemic, providing a range of cultural events and opportunities to socialize as well as academic support.
According to O’Connor, the center’s role of “showing up for students” and listening to their needs is crucial for retention. She hopes to establish an orientation program for Native students to connect with them and establish a relationship before they start classes. “We want to empower them. The key is for them to take charge of their education,” she says.
A natural collaboration
Associate Professor Mark H. Zmudy specializes in using the outdoors as a classroom. When he learned that many Indigenous students at UMD don’t have access to outdoor education or recreation due to a lack of finances, transportation and equipment, he proposed teaming up with the AILRC to develop opportunities.
Zmudy likes to “bring the fun factor” to education through games and interactive learning. He says it reduces barriers, “It’s a human element that everybody responds to.”
A UMD Engage Faculty Mini-Grant of $500 supported two successful collaborative events with the 1854 Treaty Authority and the Boulder Lake Environmental Learning Center in the fall. Students took an interpretive canoe trip, learned about the process of gathering wild rice and ate traditional foods.
A $13,000 grant from the University of Minnesota’s Center for Educational Innovation will allow Zmudy and the AILRC to expand such activities in 2024-25. The project focuses on creating a sense of belonging for Indigenous students in outdoor education.
“The whole idea is that outdoor and adventure activities—when done the right way—have a history of building connectedness and a sense of belonging,” says Zmudy. “We want Native students who come here to be able to connect to the environment. And hopefully, because of this, they will feel more connected to UMD.”
This article originally appeared in Synergy, a publication of the College of Education and Human Service Professions.