Native American Studies
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The Department of Native American Studies was established to provide and advance quality education for and about American Indians of Montana, the region, and the nation. In fulfilling this mission, the Department is committed to meet the changing needs of Montana's Indian tribes and all Montana citizens through excellence in teaching, research, and service. In its academic program, the department provides concentrated study through an undergraduate minor, the first online graduate certificate in Native American Studies offered, and a Master of Arts degree in Native American Studies. Students in any major can also gain a multicultural perspective through NAS offerings in the University's core curriculum. The Department, through its research and other creative efforts, actively pursues interdisciplinary scholarship in the field of Native American Studies.
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Item The Tribally Controlled Community Colleges Act of 1978 : an expansion of federal Indian trust responsibility(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1994) Pease-Windy Boy, JanineItem Whose deal? : Burton K. Wheeler and the Indian Reorganization Act(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 1996) Stoddart, William Morrow; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Thomas R. WesselSenator Burton K. Wheeler of Montana upheld the long-standing U. S. government policy of assimilating American Indians into the dominant populace. As a Progressive, he believed the "Indian Reorganization" bill he introduced in Congress in 1934 to permit limited self-government for reservation communities would assist Native Americans in becoming prosperous, self-sufficient members of the United States political economy. Within three years, however, Wheeler sought repeal of the act, asserting that the Indian Reorganization Act had encouraged the expansion of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and thereby subverted the efforts of American Indians to achieve independence from federal oversight. Wheeler further argued that the increased administrative influence exercised by Commissioner of Indian Affairs John Collier betrayed both the intent of the legislation and Indian people as well. Wheeler's steadfast opposition to the Indian Reorganization Act demonstrated his commitment to representative government and contrasted with the non-representative policies administered by the Indian Bureau.Item After the buffalo days : documents on the Crow Indians from the 1880's to the 1920's(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1970) Bradley, Charles CraneThe period in the history of the Crow Indians of Montana between the 1880’s and the 1920's for a long time concerned historians less than the period ending with the Custer Battle. In this thesis I have attempted' to present the important events as based on documentary evidence. Most of the documents referred to in this thesis were the letters received by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs filed in the National Archives at Washington, D.C. Reference was also made to Congressional Hearings in the Interior Department library and to Chief Plenty Coups Letter File and Note Book in the Plenty Coups Memorial. After reading between 1500 and 2000 letters concerning the Crow Reservation I concluded the basic mistake the Indian Office made was training the Crows to become farmers, herders, irrigators, carpenters, and blacksmiths. The Office of Indian Affairs never foresaw the day when a few educated Crows would attempt to manage the Reservation. Thus, when the political authority on the Reservation disintegrated, members of the Crow Business Committee were ill prepared for administrative work. The important Issues concerning the Crow Reservation from the point of view of the Government included leasing Tribal lands, granting right of ways to railroads, authorizing irrigation construction, and establishing schools. Leasing Crow land to stockmen drew much excitement and considerable brain work from the Indian Office. Leases, however, concerned the Crow Tribe less than the ceding of the western and northern portions of the Reservation. The railroads cutting through the Reservation brought economic advancement to the surrounding white people, but the Crows became dubious toward them. The Crow Irrigation Survey was significant in that it Was the first large scale employment of Crow Indians. Schools on the Crow Reservation were regarded by the Indian Office as indications of material progress and progress toward white man’s culture. World War I involved the Crow Indians in the world situation. In short, the period from the 1880’s to the 1920’s was the period of a major transition in Crow culture and also a forgotten portion in the life of Chief Plenty Coos.Item The reformation of American Indian policy and the Flathead Confederation, 1877-1893(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 1980) Spehar, Jay WilliamItem Chief Little Shell's tribe of landless Chippewa Indians of Montana : a question of recognition(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 1983) Eder, Jeanne Marie OyawinItem Termination of federal supervision over the Klamath tribe of Indians, Oregon, 1928-1961(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 1974) Beaird, William LynnItem The Sokaogon Chippewa and their lost treaty : 'We have always been here'(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 1993) McGeshick, Joseph R.; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Mary Murphy.The Sokaogon Chippewa struggled for years in northern Wisconsin to retain their traditional land which provided all the necessities of life. Researching Sokaogon history from 1826 to the early 1850s reveals that the Sokaogon enjoyed separate recognition from the federal government, as an autonomous group of Lake Superior Chippewa. However, the federal government, with the eager support of the Euroamerican population in the state, attempted to consolidate as many of the different Lake Superior Chippewa groups as possible to make room fro the influx of settlers, miners and timbermen. According to Sokaogon oral tradition, and supported by contemporary Chippewa historians and scholars, the Sokaogon negotiated and signed a treaty sometime between 1854 and 1855. Unfortunately, the treaty, and an accompanying map outlining a reservation of some twelve square miles, was lost before being ratified by Congress. Some eighty years passed before the government recognized the Sokaogon as a separate group of Lake Superior Chippewa.Item The elasticity of force : determinants of terms of trade in American Indian treaties(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 1992) Wood, Scott Alan; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Terry Anderson.In the nineteenth century the United States Government acquired millions of acres of land from Indian tribes. In the early part of the century the government obtained land primarily through purchase. Later, however, land was taken by force. This paper is a theoretical and empirical investigation into the role of force in causing the change in government Indian policy and the effect of force on the outcomes of negotiated treaties. A theory of force in negotiated settlements is developed and tested in the context of American Indian treaties with the U.S. government. The conclusion is that the government used its superior military strength to reduce the prices paid for Indian land.