Kehli Henry
Melissa Isaac
We will share strategies, successes and lessons learned around Tribal data sovereignty (TDS) and governance (TDG) happening in the homelands of the Three Fires Confederacy of Ojibwe, Odawa and Bodewadomi which share geography with what is now Michigan. Telling our own stories and countering inaccurate/damaging narratives about our communities is a fundamental way we can exercise TDS and TDG. The Confederation of Michigan Tribal Education Directors and Indigenous Education Initiative have developed a bundle of Anishinaabe-Made Learning Resources including Essential Understandings for Michigan, which are fundamental to understanding Anishinaabek People’s ways of knowing and being. The aim of this collaboration is to “truthfully cultivate the stories—past, present, and future—of Tribal Nations and Indigenous Communities that live, work, and share geography with the State of Michigan, and invite as many educators and their allies as possible into the work of indigenizing learning experiences for all students.” While statewide efforts are crucial, new strategies within Tribal nations are foundational in building TDS and TDG. The Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan (SCIT) has been engaging in this work intensively since 2016 including establishment of a Data Governance Board, research ordinance, and current research initiative to identify community defined and valued practices for decision-making and program development rooted in Anishinaabe values. SCIT is also developing plans to grow infrastructure to support community led research, evaluation and data efforts into the future. We hope our roundtable will lead to meaningful discussion and connections with nations and communities across Turtle Island and beyond.