American Indian and Indigenous Studies
The American Indian and Indigenous Studies (AIIS) minor is an interdisciplinary course of study that provides students with an understanding and appreciation of the broad historical, political, social, and economic issues and realities pertaining to indigenous societies and communities, both locally and globally, since the pre-colonial era through colonialism to modern times. The minor incorporates an interdisciplinary framework of materials, methodologies and cross-cultural comparisons from the fields of social sciences and humanities. The minor will examine historical and contemporary issues of power relations, representation, capitalism, coloniality, identity and ecology, along with social and cultural expressions rooted in the experiences and voices of indigenous peoples. Particular emphasis is placed on language revitalization, specifically in the Cherokee Language.