Learn. Build. Act.

Learn. Build. Act @ SCC

Land acknowledgements are important, but they are not enough. More needs to be done to address the divide in the relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. Ask yourself what you can do to lift our Indigenous communities.

Learn about oppression and privilege

About the history and impacts of colonization. About our Indigenous peoples and cultures, about SRP-MIC and other Arizona Indigenous people. About the land on which we work, learn, raise families and live. What is your relationship to this land? How did you come to be here? To listen. To observe. To include. There are books, music, museums, artwork, visual and performing arts, movies and videos, beliefs, hikes and so much more that have been created and are held by Indigenous people. Consider how the work you do interrelates with the land and its original people, and with these land statements. These are great places to start learning!

Build relationships to stand in solidarity with Indigenous people

Together as students, employees, friends and acquaintances, we can build a community of connection and possibility. Reach out to SCC’s American Indian Program for more information about upcoming experiences, aip@scottsdalecc.edu, (480) 423.6531, ICC-203. This is a great place to start building relationships!

Act in ways that affirm the importance of our Indigenous communities

Seek to understand their struggles. Speak up when you notice something problematic. Consider returning land at a personal, local, regional and/or national level; encourage others to do so. Give your time and money to Indigenous organizations. Shop Indigenous companies. Support Indigenous-led grassroots change movements. These small actions are great ways to make big differences at SCC!

SCC is actively working to build our relationships among our Indigenous students and employees, Arizona’s 22 Indigenous nations, and with our land hosts, the SRP-MIC, in an effort to contribute to a climate of inclusion, social justice, equity and access. The College has an Office of American Indian Programs, an American Indian Studies Program, a Sustaining and Advancing Indigenous Nations Program, and also offers several courses that integrate Indigenous culture, music and art. As a result, there are numerous cocurricular, curricular and community opportunities to learn, build and act. In fact, SCC relies and is open to ways in which we can connect more deeply with our students, employees and partners. We welcome your feedback, suggestions, questions and ideas at: aip@scottsdalecc.edu.

The SCC American Indian Program would like to thank the following contributors to these living documents and their related information.

Michael Anthony Arberry, SPAIC Co-Chair (2020-2023), Veterans Services

Shane Antone, Tribal Historic Preservation Office, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community

Dr. Becky Bradley, EdD, Director of SCC Service-learning & Leadership

Tia Bruised Head, SCC Residential Counseling Faculty

Melanie Burm, Director of SCC External Affairs - Workforce Development & Community Partnerships

Ana Cuddington, Director of SCC American Indian Program

Chris Haines, Interim President of SCC - Retired

Kim Herbst, SCC Media Production & Design Analyst Senior

Veronica Hipolito, Interim President of SCC

Janet Johnson, Community Relations Director, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community

Dr. Eric Leshinskie, President of SCC

Dr. Michael Little Crow, Indigenous Math Educator, ASU Residential Math Faculty, Adjunct Math Faculty, SCC, GCU

Roger McKinney, SCC Residential Fine Arts Faculty-Retired

Crystal Morehouse, SCC SPAIC Co-chair, SCC Institutional Research and Planning

Manny Pino, SCC Residential Behavioral Sciences Faculty, Director of SCC American Indian Studies and Sustaining and Advancing Indigenous Nations - Retired

Eric Sells, SCC Director of Marketing and Public Relations

Charissa Sundust, MCCCD Student Services Specialist, Student Affairs , Vice President of MCCCD’s United Tribal Employee Council

Winona Thirion, Director of MCCCD American Indian Outreach, SCC Interim Dean of Student Affairs

Pam Yabeny, SCC Interim Director and Adjunct Faculty, American Indian Studies and Sustaining and Advancing Indigenous Nations

Native Land offers a quick and interactive site where you find out on what indigenous land you live or have lived.

Still looking for more information, perhaps even on how to write such a statement? The US Department of Arts & Culture offers a video guide on the importance of land acknowledgements for our Indigenous people. And, if you belong to an organization that would like to draft its own land acknowledgement, there are examples from a number of institutions of higher education below. Plus, the Native Governance Center offers a simple how-to guide.

These land acknowledgments are living documents developed by SCC’s American Indian Program and Planning Committee. They do not exist in the past or as simply historical context. Land acknowledgements are a responsibility. The ongoing process of colonialism offers opportunities to build mindfulness and participation for community change. As such, these statements and the contents of this web page can be further developed and revised in conversation with the SRP-MIC. Inquiries can be sent to Ana Cuddington, SCC’s director of the American Indian Program and Indigenous Cultural Center: ana.cuddington@scottsdalecc.edu.

(original document created February 2021 by Dr. Becky Bradley and Ana Cuddington)