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CMN/Emory Receive Mellon Foundation Grant to Support Native American and Indigenous Studies
The Mellon Foundation will award a $2,412,000.00 grant to Emory University in partnership with the College of the Muscogee Nation (CMN) to support the development of a program of study in Native American and Indigenous Studies. Emory University, founded in 1836, is located on the ancestral homelands of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. As part of the initiative to develop a land acknowledgement, Emory’s Associate Dean of Admissions reached out to the Muscogee (Creek) Nation for guidance and collaboration. This resulted in an ongoing two-year relationship between Emory University, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and the College of the Muscogee Nation. Not only did Emory adopt a land acknowledgement, but the partnership created the framework for an Indigenous Studies minor at Emory. Future work will seek to construct a physical and literal language path on the Emory campus in Atlanta that will extend to the Oxford campus. The partnership will also support CMN in the development of a bachelor’s degree in Native American Studies to include a master-apprentice style of teaching and learning focus for the Mvskoke Language Certificate program. More information on the work of Emory University can be found on the website at https://www.emory.edu/home/index.html.
The College of the Muscogee is an integral proponent of the Mvskoke Language Revitalization effort taking place within the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. As the Tribal College for the nation, it is CMN’s mission to emphasize native culture, values, language, and self-determination. To that end, CMN is accredited to offer an Associate of Arts in Native American Studies with an emphasis in Mvskoke Language, an in-person, and online Mvskoke Language Certificate and a recently added Mvskoke Language Teaching Certificate. As a partner with Emory University, CMN will benefit from the grant awarded by the Mellon Foundation. This grant will allow CMN to offer new sections of the Mvskoke Language Certificate as master-apprentice teaching and learning classes. Cohorts will be developed at CMN to include one highly proficient master Mvskoke language speaker (teacher) and four apprentices (students). The new sections will be structured to maximize the amount of time the apprentices spend with the masters and therefore their exposure to the language. The apprentices will be immersed in the language daily during the 15-week term. The cohort cycle will be for one academic year, which is three 15-week terms. The College of the Muscogee Nation will have the opportunity to complete nine cohorts during the three-year grant.
In preparation for the grant, CMN will be setting Mvskoke language proficiency tests and performance assessments in order to redesign the existing curriculum. The masters and apprentices will be identified and selected for the new sections based on their merit. With the full support of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, Emory University, and the Mellon Foundation, the College of the Muscogee Nation will develop the structure to the lead the Mvskoke Language Revitalization effort. For more information on CMN’s academic programs contact us at admissions@cmn.edu or at https://cmn.edu/.
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The College of the Muscogee Nation is Oklahoma’s premier tribal college offering exemplary academic degree programs and student services preparing leaders in tribal and non-tribal sectors.