Miami Tribe of Oklahoma commits $2 million to the Myaamia Center Endowment
“It’s the responsibility of Tribal leaders to preserve this work for the benefit of all Tribal members,” said Chief Douglas Lankford of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma. “We hope this investment will strengthen our nation and our future.”
Miami Tribe of Oklahoma commits $2 million to the Myaamia Center Endowment
Miami University’s Myaamia Center is committed to preserving the language and culture of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma.
The Tribe is just as committed to the Myaamia Center and its mission.
With its recent $2 million contribution to the Myaamia Center’s endowment, the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma is helping to ensure the continued growth and expansion of the center.
“This major gift to the Myaamia Center endowment signifies not only the commitment from Tribal leadership toward the ongoing preservation of this effort, but serves as a message to future generations that we will continue to invest in our educational initiatives in order to serve all Myaamia people wherever they may live,” said Daryl Baldwin, executive director of the Myaamia Center.
Created in 2001 and originally known as the Myaamia Project, the center is the heart of the Tribe’s cultural and language revitalization work. Now with 16 dedicated staff members and significant momentum toward revitalizing the Myaamia language, the center speaks to the commitment between the Tribe and the university to neepwaantiinki – the Myaamia term for “learning from each other.”
“It’s the responsibility of Tribal leaders to preserve this work for the benefit of all Tribal members,” said Chief Douglas Lankford of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma. “We hope this investment will strengthen our nation and our future.”
The Tribe and university celebrate the 50th anniversary of their partnership this year, beginning at the Tribe’s annual Winter Gathering this weekend in Oklahoma. Although external participation in the celebration has been scaled back due to COVID, there are plans for a year of activities to mark this milestone on campus and virtually through the Miami University Alumni Association.
“We are grateful to the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma for this very generous contribution as we celebrate 50 years of this unique partnership,” said Miami University President Gregory Crawford. “It reaffirms how the university and the Tribe stand together, and how our relationship is a platform of mutual respect and inclusion.”
The enthusiasm for the ongoing relationship between the university and the Tribe is stronger than ever. The relationship is in a good place, said Kara Strass, director of Miami Tribe relations, and both the university and Tribe are excited about the direction of the partnership moving forward in the 50th anniversary and beyond.
There are currently 39 Miami Tribe students enrolled at the university, the largest number ever, and 100 Myaamia students have graduated since the first three enrolled in the university in 1991.
“Our students are part of the future of the Tribe,” Strass said. “They are giving back in a variety of ways, and they are becoming engaged Tribal citizens. All of this is having an impact on the forward momentum of the work the Tribe is doing.”
That momentum is also supported by University Advancement’s Corporate and Foundation Relations team. Working in collaboration with Myaamia Center leadership, the team has helped secure external funding for the National Breath of Life initiative, including a recent $510,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation.
