The Penobscot Nation Cultural and Historic Preservation Department will host a three-part Wabanaki Scholars Series starting Thursday, Dec. 15 at Minsky Hall on the University of Maine campus in Orono.
The Wabanaki Scholars Series — which the Penobscot Nation is sponsoring in collaboration with the University of Maine’s Wabanaki Center — will highlight academic research by post-graduate Wabanaki scholars on a variety of topics.
Wabanaki refers collectively to the Penobscot, Passamaquoddy, Abenaki, Micmac, and Maliseet Indians located in the Northeast. Each event in the series will offer two scholarly presentations followed by facilitated discussion. Light refreshments will be served.
Featured presenters for Dec. 15 are Gail Dana-Sacco and Rebecca Sockbeson. Dana-Sacco, a Passamaquoddy from Sipayik, will offer a presentation entitled “Nujialoosune: Indigenous Research as Exploration and Discovery in Motion.” Sockbeson, from the Penobscot Nation, will present “Cipenuk Red Hope: Weaving Policy Toward Decolonization & Beyond.”
The second and third sessions in the series will take place on Jan. 19 and Feb. 2, 2012, and will feature research by Sherri Mitchell, Bonnie Newsom, Suzanne Greenlaw and Maria Girouard.
The purpose of the series is to highlight academic accomplishments while bringing Wabanaki perspectives to the forefront of education.
The Wabanaki Scholars Series is funded by the People of Color Endowment Fund of the Maine Community Foundation. For more information about the series, visit www.penobscotculture.com or call James Francis at 207-817-7472.