As we head into mid-September, the weather has felt like summer here in Oxford, Ohio, but regardless, the fall semester is in full swing at Miami University. We welcomed Myaamia Heritage students back to campus with our first Myaamia Heritage class and annual student retreat during the first week of classes. While this time of year is busy for Myaamia students and Myaamia Center staff, it’s a great chance to kick off our school year together as a community.
Our first-year Myaamia Heritage students moved to campus on Tuesday, August 22. That evening, we gathered with students and their families to discuss the Myaamia Heritage program and welcome everyone to campus, but the majority of activities took place the following day.
Several upper-class Myaamia students attended the program to serve as mentors. We spent the day working on an art project, learning Myaamiaataweenki, and playing games. Mentors showed our first-year students around campus, helped them find their classrooms, and answered questions about being a Myaamia Heritage student. We hope this program gives new students a chance to acclimate to Miami University and the Heritage Program as they arrive on campus.
We welcomed our full cohort back to campus with our first Heritage class of the year on Tuesday, August 29. There are 47 Myaamia students enrolled at Miami University this year. In addition, we have two Myaamia students, Ahsapa ‘Jared Nally’ and Aahkoleeka ‘Chris Bowyer’ serving as Aanchtaakia Graduate Fellows at the Myaamia Center.
In class, we started with introductions before enjoying a pizza party together, so everyone could get to know each other. The theme of this year’s class is iiši-mihtoseeniwiyankwi myaaamiaki noonki kaahkiihkwe ‘How the Myaamia Live Today’ and is being taught by George Ironstrack. This class focuses on tribal sovereignty, current events, and Myaamia art and culture. The class is being held in MacMillan Hall 212, the space dedicated to the Miami Tribe by the university during our 50th Anniversary celebration. Plans are currently in the works with University Communications and Marketing to update and redecorate the room with Myaamia aesthetics and artwork.
Every year, we host a student retreat on the first Friday of classes. Although our senior students aren’t required to attend Myaamia Heritage classes, they attend the retreat so all of the students get to know each other. This is one of the few events all the students are required to attend, so we take advantage of the opportunity to grab group photos! We’ll be sure to share these photos on social media once they become available.
Throughout the evening we continue getting to know each other through icebreaker activities, playing Myaamia games, and having a community discussion about what the students would like to do outside of class. We heard lots of great ideas for workshops, trips, and activities to host this year!
While these first couple weeks of the school year can feel like a whirlwind, we know these events energize the entire community and get us excited for the school year ahead. There are lots of exciting activities happening at Miami University for the whole Myaamia community.
This includes the “Celebrating Miami: Tribe and University” week we are hosting with Miami University’s Athletic Department on November 6-10, 2023. During this week, athletic events will highlight the relationship between the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and Miami University. We will also host the biannual Myaamiaki Conference in Spring 2024 to highlight all the exciting work happening at the Myaamia Center.
You can stay up to date with the Myaamia Heritage students and all of our campus events with the resources below:
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