UB receives $500,000 grant to develop Haudenosaunee research portal

The grant will also support the creation of the “Haudenosaunee Hub” and new hires in the Indigenous Studies Department

The College of Arts and Sciences received a $500,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation in order to support the next phase of The Haudenosaunee Archive, Resource and Knowledge (HARK) portal, UB announced last month. The project initiatives are being led by UB’s new Department of Indigenous Studies.

The portal will be a platform for the production of community-driven digital resources and circulation and preservation of Indigenous research. The project previously received a $175,000 planning grant from the Mellon Foundation in 2021 and a $3.174 million grant in 2019.

The planning grant is also being used to create the “Haudenosaunee Hub,” which will provide networking opportunities for Indigenous communities and connect cultural heritage items to community needs.

“The hub is people and resources,” McCarthy said in a statement. “The portal will be the product of that infrastructure.”

The Department of Indigenous Studies will make additional hires in the upcoming months to manage the hub, including a digital librarian and a community archivist.

“In developing the technology infrastructure that will serve as the foundation for the HARK portal, we will be building a comprehensive digital resource that collects, preserves and shares Indigenous knowledge,” Evviva Weinraub Lajoie, vice provost for University Libraries, said in a statement.“Drawing on the expertise and insight to the Haudenosaunee community, this portal will deliver a wealth of infor- mation for researchers and scholars on the rich history, language and traditions to the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.”

The UB Native American Studies program began in 1972. It was the first higher education program of its kind and served as the foundation for the recently created Department of Indigenous Studies.

“We want to tell that story [of UB’s contribution],” Mia McKie (Tuscarora Nation, Turtle Clan), a professor of Indigenous studies, said. “Utilizing published and publicly available materials serves as an ethical starting point for this project, to avoid digitizing materials that may be identified as sensitive or sacred.”

Developing the portal will also support the community by connecting other Indigenous repositories, cultural centers, community-based archival initiatives and interested individual Haudenosaunee cultural heritage preservationists and artists.

“Nothing like this exists for us, despite the profound need to facilitate a network for information sharing across our Confederacy, to transcend boundaries and borders now cross-cutting our Haudenosaunee homelands that have sought to separate and divide us,” Theresa McCarthy (Six Nations, Onondaga), a professor and director of the Indigenous Studies Department, said. “This grant allows us to build what’s necessary to keep this information and knowledge accessible to the people and places from where it originates — which is fundamental to sovereignty.”

Email: suha.chowdhury@ubspectrum.com

If they are reelected, Paul-Odionhin and Pang say they plan to prioritize student engagement and communication in their next term.

As part of their platform, “Paul&Pang” want to implement mandatory e-board training for new and returning SA employees, which they hope will accelerate the learning process. “Paul&Pang” also wants to add a separate committee for Spring/ Fall Fest production because of how much time and money it takes to plan these events.

More of Paul-Odionhin and Pang’s platform can be found here.

PanDias

Astha Pandey, a junior philosophy, politics and economics (PPE) major is running for SA president alongside her vice presidential running mate, Thomas Dias, a fellow junior PPE major. Pandey is currently an assistant director of equity, diversity and inclusion.

Their party, PanDias, has three main points on their platform: catering to clubs, transforming SA and being better advocates for the undergraduate student body.

As a part of their election campaign, Pandey and Dias say they have been talking to numerous clubs to get feedback on the current SA and what they want to see changed. They also want to incorporate bi-weekly town halls where “anybody can come to contribute ideas, complaints or critiques.”

PanDias encourages students to vote for them because they are “extremely dedicated” to these positions. Neither of them will be involved in other clubs or outside activities, in an effort to fully immerse themselves in the student body.

“We’re going to be entirely dedicated to serving them [the students] and what they want,” Dias said. “The students hire us and it’s our job to serve them.”

More of Pandey and Dias’ platforms can be found here.

Unnati Agarwal

Unnati Agarwal, a junior biomedical engineering major, is the sole candidate running for treasurer.

Coming from a family of businessmen, Agarwal believes she is financially literate and capable of implementing changes that will provide students with a better undergraduate experience. She said she plans to shadow the current treasurer, Alana Lesczynski, to ensure that she can get well-adjusted to her role if elected. (Lesczynski, a senior studio art major, will be graduating and is therefore not eligible for reelection.)

Agarwal said she wants to address clubs’ financial concerns, including delayed approvals for programs. Increased fundraising efforts and collaboration initiatives are the main priorities of her platform.

“I want to emphasize that I’m committed to working collaboratively with the rest of the executive board and all clubs to achieve our shared goals,” Agarwal said. “I am a person who can make a difference and who can improve funding that clubs and organizations receive.”

Email: victoria.hill@ubspectrum.com

Email: kiana.hodge@ubspectrum.com