Native American studies at the University of Montana are getting a $1 million boost. The gift will support Indigenous humanities programs.
In a news release, the university said the gift will support 15 student internships, a new tenure-track faculty member and an Indigenous scholar-in-residence, all with the goal of teaching students traditional Native stories, knowledge and language.
UM’s Native American Studies Department Chair Annie Belcourt said the funding will help the program continue to grow after it fell to one full-time professor during the pandemic.
“This gift is really an amazing investment in our program, in our campus, and will really elevate our ability to provide Indigenous-centered education into the future,” Belcourt told MTPR.
Montana is the only state in the nation that requires all students to learn about Indigenous cultures and heritage. The university said the grant will help it develop new curricula across all of UM’s humanities programs to help carry out that constitutional mandate.
The Mellon Foundation awarded UM the money as part of its mission to fund arts and humanities projects nationwide. The nonprofit has gifted more than $260 million this year so far.
