1. Abstract
South Dakota, whose name originated from indigenous language, is home to six state public universities. Each of these Colleges share a core set of values
which stress that cultural diversity and academic excellence are crucial parts of their respective educational missions. The focus of this project is to examine the
presence of history that pertains to American Indian and Native American perspectives and its relevance to curriculum across South Dakota's state public
universities. The results show a significant absence of American Indian and Native American History courses in overall History curriculum offered throughout
the state. When compared to courses of United States History, American Indian and Native American History courses have a lesser presence. Further analysis
between the schools' most recently offered courses, archives, and registries, pertaining to American Indian and Native American studies, show a divergence
between courses offered and courses active.
Native American Studies in South Dakota's Public Universities
Amanda Conway
Mentor, Steven A. Usitalo, Professor of History at NSU
Courses Offered and Courses Active
School A
Other (Archive)
American/ US (Archive)
Native American/ American
Indian Emphasis (Archive)
Other (WebAdvisor)
American/ US (WebAdvisor)
Native American/ American
Indian (WebAdvisor)
Courses Offered and Courses Active
School B
Other (Archive)
American/ US (Archive)
Native American/ American
Indian Emphasis (Archive)
Other (WebAdvisor)
American/ US (WebAdvisor)
Native American/ American
Indian (WebAdvisor)
Courses Offered and Courses Active
School C
Other (Archive)
American/ US (Archive)
Native American/ American
Indian Emphasis (Archive)
Other (WebAdvisor)
American/ US (WebAdvisor)
Native American/ American
Indian (WebAdvisor)
Total History Courses from 2014-2015 Archives
All Schools
American/ US
Native American/
American Indian
Other
Total History Courses from WebAdvisor 2015
All Schools
American/ US
Native American/
American Indian
Other
Results
The following pie charts offer an overall view of the significant absence of Native American and American
Indian History courses when compared to that of US History, as well as all other History courses.
Methods
The methods involved in understanding the differences in availability between
US/American History and Native American/American Indian History courses
come from research which utilized each school's official website, and
WebAdvisor—a registry tool available to all students who attend the regental
schools across the state. There are six public state schools that are being
examined, all of which have been randomly assorted and given letters A-F for
clarification of the results. To fit the type of study, only Undergraduate level
courses have been included. The subjects examined are History, American
Indian Studies, Indian Education, Native Studies.
 Collected course listings from each school's 2014-2015 course catalog
archives in subjects of History, American Indian Studies, Indian Education,
Lakota, and Native Studies
 Gathered and categorized course data whose descriptions pertained to
US/American History and Native American/American Indian emphasis
 Collected course availability using the WebAdvisor tool in subjects of
History, American Indian Studies, Indian Education, Lakota, and Native
Studies for Spring 2015 and Summer 2015 because access to the previous
semester, Fall 2014, was unavailable
 Gathered and categorized course availability whose descriptions pertained to
US/American History and Native American/American Indian emphasis.
Introduction
The reason for this study stemmed from a genuine curiosity of the
beautiful culture that is unique to this area of the United States from
the rest of the world. Taking into account the existence of
reservations and Native American Culture, but having little exposure
in an academic setting of understanding the origins and History of
Native American heritage and reservations, analysis was used in
schools of higher education in an effort to understand on a deeper
level if there was an absence of Historical education in terms of
implementing a Native American perspective and presence.
Conclusion
Native American and American Indian History courses have a limited presence in our school’s archives and active curriculum when compared to US and other History courses.
This study points to other methods of implementing cultural perspectives. Through History education, we have opportunities of building cultural connection, supporting the values of
higher education and acknowledging the past.
Courses Offered and Courses Active
School D
Other (Archive)
American/ US (Archive)
Native American/ American
Indian Emphasis (Archive)
Other (WebAdvisor)
American/ US (WebAdvisor)
Native American/ American
Indian (WebAdvisor)
Courses Offered and Courses Active
School E
Other (Archive)
American/ US (Archive)
Native American/ American
Indian Emphasis (Archive)
Other (WebAdvisor)
American/ US (WebAdvisor)
Native American/ American
Indian (WebAdvisor)
Courses Offered and Courses Active
School F
Other (Archive)
American/ US (Archive)
Native American/ American
Indian Emphasis (Archive)
Other (WebAdvisor)
American/ US (WebAdvisor)
Native American/ American
Indian (WebAdvisor)