News

Be safe

We hope everyone is staying safe. Thanks to Meyo Marrufo (Pomo) for this beautiful reminder. Follow her on instagram @meyomarrufo

Language Is a Casualty of War: A Conversation with Beth Piatote

Myers Center faculty affiliate Beth Piatote was interviewed by the Los Angeles Review of Books about her book of short stories The Beadworkers and how "language is a casualty of war."

Acclaim for Beth Piatote's New Book of Short Stories

The Beadworkers: Stories by Myers Center affiliated faculty member Beth Piatote was featured by Salon.com as one of "October's must-reads… Beth Piatote’s marvelous debut short story collection explores crossroads in the lives of unforgettable Indigenous characters." The book also got a great review on Publishers Weekly!

U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo in conversation with Myers Center faculty affiliate Beth Piatote

This full recording will be available until May 7, 2020.

Please support the Myers Center!

This week is the Big Give, a campus-wide fundraising campaign. Please support the Myers Center to fund student research that addresses the needs of Native communities today. Thank you!

Call for Applications: 2020-21 Graduate Fellows Program

The Myers Center is currently seeking applications for the 2020-21 Graduate Fellows Program, a training program based at the Institute for the Study of Societal Issues. UC Berkeley graduate students who have completed at least three years of graduate studies and whose research promotes the well-being of Native communities are eligible to apply. Read more about the program and download an application here.

Myers Center Mini-grants - Call for Proposals

The Myers Center invites UC Berkeley undergraduates and graduate students, who are conducting individual research projects on issues affecting Native American communities in the U.S. today, to apply for mini-grants. Proposals that support undergraduate thesis or graduate dissertation research are strongly encourages. Undergraduates may apply for grants up to $500. Graduate students may apply for grants up to $1000. Read more about the Myers Center Mini-grant Program and download an application here. Applications are due on Monday, October 14 by 4pm.

na:tinixwe mixine:whe (Hupa) Language Immersion Summer Camp - in the News

The language immersion summer camp organized by Sara Chase (UCB PhD candidate and former Myers Center mini-grant awardee) and members of the Hoopa Tribal Education Association, was recently featured in the New York Times. "For decades, native speakers of Hupa, also known as na:tinixwe mixine:whe, have dwindled. Only about 20 people are fluent enough today to teach the language and pass it on, tribe members estimate. The camp is a bet that immersion at a young age can help change that. 'That’s always the goal,' said Sara Chase, a member of the tribe who organized the camp with the Hoopa Tribal Education Association. 'How do you create new speakers?'” Read more!

Native Youth College and Career Institute

The Myers Center, in partnership with the California Indian Museum and Cultural Center and Native American Student Development, will host a Native Youth College and Career Institute from June 24-27, 2019. Do you know high school students who would be interested in attending a 4-day institute to learn more about higher education and UC Berkeley? Visit https://cimcc.org/native-youth-programs/college-career-institute/ for more information and to indicate interest.

Myers Center Holds Advanced Native American Museum Studies Institute

In June, the Joseph A. Myers Center at UC Berkeley provided four days of intensive training to 20 Native museum professionals and volunteers from more than a dozen tribal museums and cultural centers in various stages of development. This free training helps to increase the capacity of tribal community members to conserve and revitalize their cultural heritage. The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians provided 10 participants with travel stipends, making it possible for them to attend. Thank you San Manuel!