Who We Are
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln Native American Coalition (NAC) builds relationships and partnerships between the Nebraska Extension and Native American communities and organizations. The work of NAC is to help Nebraska Extension staff work more effectively with Native American communities, to build bridges between tribal and non-tribal communities, to facilitate community development and leadership in Native communities and to bring Native American traditional worldviews, languages, cultures and histories to the University of Nebraska and non-tribal communities.
Land acknowledgement statement
"We would like to begin by acknowledging that the University of Nebraska is a land-grant institution with campuses and programs on the past, present, and future homelands of the Pawnee, Ponca, Oto-Missouria, Omaha, Dakota, Lakota, Arapaho, Cheyenne, and Kaw Peoples, as well as the relocated Ho-Chunk, Iowa, and Sac and Fox Peoples. Please take a moment to consider the legacies of more than 150 years of displacement, violence, settlement, and survival that bring us together here today. At the University of Nebraska, we respect and seek out inclusion of differences, realizing we can learn from each other, and we look forward to building long-lasting relationships with the Indigenous People of Nebraska."
Chuck Hibberd, Nebraska Extension Emeriti
574
Federally Recognized Tribes in the United States
5 Nebraska Land-based Tribes
Umonhon, Isanti, Ho-Chunk, Ponca, and Iowa Nations
51
Native Students in Fall 2021 at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln
16,100
Native Americans in Nebraska
35% residing on state’s 3 reservations
65% living in urban areas in Nebraska
Indigenous Educational Programs
Hoop of Learning Program
An indigenous college and career program for Lincoln Public School indigenous 11th and 12th grade students to bridge into Southeast Community College and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. A cohort of twenty Indigenous LPS students will be chosen each year to receive academic, financial, and cultural advisement as they progress along this college and career pathway. Additionally, students will have the opportunity to participate in informational and cultural events with their families at all three educational institutions.
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Applied Science Online Degree Program
Nebraska Indian Community College (NICC) and the UNL College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources have partnered to create an articulation agreement for a B.S. in Applied Science Program (Online). This online program provides tribal students the opportunity to take classes from the convenience of their homes or at NICC’s computer labs. Applied Science is one of the most flexible majors, allowing you to choose from several areas of emphasis.
Learn MoreIndigenous Food Wellness Circle Program
Indigenous Food Wellness Circle Classes
This program uses the Indigenous medicine wheel as a model to focus on the four directions for healthy eating: nutrition education, food preparation and safety, cooking and recipes, and food preservation.
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Indigenous Food Wellness Circle Events
These events are hosted in the spring, summer, fall, and winter by the UNL Tribal Extension Office. Tribal communities in Nebraska are invited to attend these seasonal wellness circle events that focus on nutrition education, food preparation and safety, cooking and recipes, and food preservation.
Learn MoreUrban Indigenous Food Sovereignty Programs
Indigenous Youth Food Sovereignty Programs
This program will welcome Native American students from Omaha and Lincoln to engage with Native American elders, UNL faculty, and Extension educators to learn how to grow their own food and establish food sovereignty for their families and communities. Students will grow both edible and medicinal traditional foods in Indigenous gardens on UNL's East Campus in Lincoln and at the Joslyn Castle in Omaha.
Learn MoreRural Indigenous Food Sovereignty Programs
Ashita Thewathe (Let's Go Outside) K-8 Garden Program
This tribal food sustainability program engages K – 8 students at the Umonhon Nation Public School in hands-on, outdoor group and individual experiences that provide a love of gardening, develops an appreciation for the environment and a connection to their language and traditional practices.
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UNL / UNPS Farm to School Program
This program is a collaboration between the UNL Native American Coalition and the Umonhon Nation Public School (UNPS) food sustainability programs. UNL will provide training and funding for UNPS to bring fresh-grown produce to the lunch tables for their K–12 students. This collaboration will also share Umonhon language and traditional growing practices with the students.
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Ukhikon-A
(Helping One Another) Cooperative Program
This program will educate Umonhon Nation Tribal members on how to start a business or cooperative in their communities. Community members will learn basic concepts in planning, promoting, and understanding business/cooperative structures and designs.
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Nation Nourishment Program
This program is a partnership between Nebraska Indian Community College, the Center for Rural Affairs, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Tribal Extension Program. This tribal food sustainability program is designed to create local food producers for the Umonhon Nation. These food producers will grow food for their families, communities and commercial venues to create economic development.
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Umonhon Nation Hydroponics Initiative
This program focuses on hydroponics, a non-traditional method for growing food. Hydroponics involves growing plants without soil by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions. This program will provide year-round fresh food for the Umonhon tribe.
Learn MoreUNL / Tribal Cultural Exchange Programs
Medicine Wheel Talking Circle Training Model
The first goal of the Medicine Wheel Talking Circle Training Model is to create good relationships and foster strong identity which leads to people becoming good relatives to one another. The second goal of this model is to create relationships between Nebraska communities and Nebraska Extension.
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Tribal Engagement Training Model
This model utilizes an Indigenous medicine wheel design that acknowledges the four directions and the circular motion of the medicine wheel that starts in the east and flows clockwise south, west and north. This model is designed to provide four two-hour training modules that will share knowledge on tribal worldviews/cultures, tribal policies/history, tribal community assessment and tribal economic opportunities.
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Indigenous Speaker Series
Indigenous speakers will be invited to speak on a variety of issues such as traditional women’s roles, Indigenous relationships with the earth and water and traditional Indigenous worldviews.
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UNL / Indigenous Summits
These summits will bring together tribal communities, UNL Faculty, and Nebraska Extension Educators to focus on the health and relationships of all living things.
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Domestic Violence Among Native Americans
Nebraska and South Dakota researchers are collaborating to address unique challenges faced by rural Native American survivors of domestic violence.
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Understanding the Issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women
Across the United States and Canada Native Women and girls are being taken or murdered at an unrelenting rate.
Learn MoreGet Involved
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