Sinte Gleska University (SGU) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichke ...

tribal The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to conflic ...

land-grant university A land-grant university (also called land-grant college or land-grant institution) is an institution of higher education in the United States designated by a state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890. Signed by Abraha ...

Mission, South Dakota Mission is a city on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in northern Todd County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,156 at the 2020 census. Mission is home of the Sinte Gleska University. It is the largest incorporated community in t ...

, on the

Rosebud Indian Reservation The Rosebud Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in South Dakota, United States. It is the home of the federally recognized Rosebud Sioux Tribe, who are Sicangu, a band of Lakota people. The Lakota name ''Sicangu Oyate'' translates as ...

. This is a Brulé Lakota

Indian Reservation An Indian reservation is an area of land held and governed by a federally recognized Native American tribal nation whose government is accountable to the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs and not to the state government in which it ...

home to the Sicangu (Burnt Thigh). SGU has an enrollment of 828 full and part-time students.American Indian Higher Education Consortium
It is regionally accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iow ...

History

SGU was founded in 1971. SGU was named for the Brulé Lakota chief Sinte Gleska."SGU Main Page."
''Sinte Gleska University''. 2009 (retrieved December 23, 2010) The founding Board President was Lakota elder Stanley Red Bird Sr., and Joseph M. Marshall III, the first published writer in Lakota, was a founder as well. In 1994, the college was designated a

land-grant college A land-grant university (also called land-grant college or land-grant institution) is an institution of higher education in the United States designated by a state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Land-Grant Acts, Morrill Acts of 1862 and ...

alongside 31 other tribal colleges.

Partnerships

The college is a member of the

American Indian Higher Education Consortium The American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) was established in 1972 to represent the interests of the newly developed tribal colleges, which are controlled and operated by American Indian nations. The four founders were Gerald One F ...

, a community of tribally and federally chartered institutions working to strengthen tribal nations. Tribal colleges generally serve geographically isolated populations who have no other means accessing higher education; they also are a means for the tribes to teach subjects from the perspectives of their cultures, as well as specific classes in their cultures.

Academics

SGU describes its approach to higher education as focusing on "an educational direction and philosophy that both promotes and preserves our Lakol Wicohan (traditional way of life) for the benefit of our future generations." The university offers 25 associate degrees, 23 bachelor's degrees, two master's degrees, a dozen certificate programs, and several vocation programs through seven academic undergraduate departments: *Great Plains Art Institute *Arts and Sciences *Business *Education *Human Services *Lakota Studies *Institute of Technologies (vocational/career education) The college has programs in Lakota studies, including the

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...

and aesthetics. As of 2011, it is one of seven tribal colleges in the U.S. to offer a degree related to tribal administration. The Great Plains Art Institute of the University offers AA and BA degrees in art and a BAAE degree in art education. SGU sponsors the annual Northern Plains Indian Art Market in

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the List of cities in South Dakota, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the List of United States cities by population, 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha Count ...

, which includes a juried art show, art market,

powwow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations communities. Powwows today allow Indigenous people to socialize, dance, sing, and honor their cultures. Powwows may be private or pu ...

, and

Oscar Howe Oscar Howe (''Mazuha Hokshina'' or "Trader Boy", May 13, 1915 – October 7, 1983) was a Yanktonai Dakota artist from South Dakota, who became well known for his casein and tempera paintings.Libhart, Myles and Vincent Price. ''Contemporary Sioux ...

lecture. The market aims to educate students and the community about

Northern Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and ...

art, philosophy, dance, and music. SGU has partnered with

Red Crow Community College Red Crow Community College is a college located on the Kainai Nation reserve in southern Alberta, Canada with a campus in Lethbridge. Partnerships Red Crow College is a member of the First Nation & Adult Higher Education Consortium, a non-profi ...

and Old Sun Community College, both in

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Terri ...

, Canada, enabling them to offer a master's degree in education, with an emphasis in early childhood special education."First Nations Colleges Offer SGU Master's"
, ''Tribal College Journal'', Volume 16 Spring 2005 Issue No. 3. (retrieved December 23, 2010)

Notable faculty

LeAnne Howe LeAnne Howe (born April 29, 1951, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma) is an American author and Eidson Distinguished Professor in the Department of English at the University of Georgia, Athens. She previously taught American Indian Studies and English a ...

(

Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma The Choctaw Nation (Choctaw: ''Chahta Okla'') is a Native American territory covering about , occupying portions of southeastern Oklahoma in the United States. The Choctaw Nation is the third-largest federally recognized tribe in the United St ...

) *

Joe L. Kincheloe Joe Lyons Kincheloe (December 14, 1950 – December 19, 2008) was a professor and Canada Research Chair at the Faculty of Education, McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and founder of The Paulo and Nita Freire International Project for ...

(1950–2008) * Simon J. Ortiz (

Acoma Pueblo Acoma Pueblo (, kjq, Áakʼu) is a Native American pueblo approximately west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. Four communities make up the village of Acoma Pueblo: Sky City (Old Acoma), Acomita, Anzac, and McCartys. These com ...

) *

Albert White Hat Albert White Hat (November 18, 1938June 13, 2013) was a teacher of the Lakota language, and an activist for Sičháŋǧu Lakȟóta traditional culture. He translated the Lakota language for Hollywood movies, including the 1990 movie ''Dances with ...

(1929–2013) *Doris Leader Charge (1931-2001)

References

External links