Tennessee Technological University honoring Native American Heritage Month with several events

The Center for Intercultural Affairs, Center Stage, and the Department of History at Tennessee Technological University have come together to organize a series of events in recognition of Native American Heritage Month, which is the month of November.

According to an article on Tennessee Technological University’s website, there are three events in the works. On November 1, there is an American Indian History Exhibition; on November 7, there will be Reflections on Community Immersion; on November 9, the series comes to a close with First Nation’s Circle of Music.

Troy Smith, who is an associate professor of history at Tennessee Tech, explained the importance of these events, saying, “Native American history is American history. You cannot understand where we are or how we got here without understanding the indigenous people of this country.”

He went on to add, “There are an incredible amount of things we can learn from [indigenous cultures] – how to build community, how to protect nature, how to find balance in life, how to honor those who came before and protect those coming after.”

Smith will be speaking at the American Indian History Exhibition, along with Tennessee Tech’s coordinator of international admissions Sayota Knight, who is Chiricahua Apache, Rick Moles, who is Cherokee, and Sabrina Buer, Tennessee Tech’s grant coordinator, who is Cherokee. 

The Reflections on Community Immersion event will feature talks from PhD and graduate students who went on a Cultural Immersion Tour.

The final event, First Nation’s Circle of Music, will feature performances from representatives of several indigenous tribes.

All of the events are free and are open to the public. 

For more information about Tennessee Technological University, visit the school’s website.