Course Offering for Fall 2026 AIS 401 Contemporary American Indian Social Issues

AIS 401 will evaluate the strengths and limitations of different forms of community engagement to prepare students to perform community-centered work in ways that push back against Native exploitation and extraction.

This course is a survey course which will use service learning to examine contemporary social issues of American Indians. Recognizing and accepting the unique sovereign status of American Indian nations, we will examine current issues such as economic development, education, freedom of religion, health, Indian gaming and tourism, sports mascots, media images, the Indian Child Welfare Act, American Indian identity, the urban experience, and federal/state/tribal relationships.

This course fulfills a core requirement for the American Indian Studies Minor, is an approved cultural contexts elective for some majors, and an approved community-partnership course.