Native American Studies - University of Michigan

Where are they now?
Meet Elise McGowan-Cuellar, Attorney and Appellate Justice with Little River Band of Ottawa Indians & Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Court. Her commitment to community work is evident through her service on four boards/foundations. Read more below!

The Native American Studies program presented the 2026 annual Berkhofer Lecture on April 20th. This year's speaker was actress, writer, and comedian Jana Schmieding (Lakota).

Before the lecture, Schmieding connected with students over dinner, followed by a live conversation with Bethany Hughes that offered insight into her career and advocacy.

Where are they now?
Meet Jodi Branton, a Cultural Consultant with Awishinaabe Consulting LLC. Her American Culture major (and History minor) has helped her make and foster relationships, and she urges students to be active in the AMCULT community on campus! Read more below.

Join us tomorrow for our annual Betty Ch'Maj Lecture and Friday for our 90th Anniversary Symposium!

April 2nd at 7PM
We are thrilled to announce that Professor George J. Sánchez will deliver the Ch’maj lecture. Professor Sánchez is a leading scholar of American Studies and Ethnicity as well as History at the University of Southern California where he serves as Vice Dean for Diversity and Strategic Initiatives in the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

April 3rd at 10AM
Students, alumni, staff, and faculty will gather for a day of conversation and reflection on 90 years of inventive and experimental work in the study of American cultures. Graduates of our PhD program will return to campus to participate in these Friday panels alongside current graduate students and faculty.

Please join us!

4 days left… We hope to see you all on April 2nd & 3rd for our 90th Anniversary Symposium!

In the meantime, learn about one of our welcome address speakers, Cherry Meyer.

Giving Blueday is TODAY!

Support Native American Studies and help fund partnerships, student research, and programming. Every gift strengthens this vital work!

Make your impact now: https://bit.ly/4upogOn

Get ready for Giving Blueday!

Next week, your gift can help sustain research, education, and other student opportunities. Every gift powers the programs and people shaping the future in our department.

Trivia time! What year was NAS established? Share your guesses below.

Thank you for 27 incredible years of service, Dr. Amy Stillman. From serving as Director of Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies (2000–2007) to serving as Director of Native American Studies (2022–2025), Dr. Stillman has transformed our community through visionary scholarship, fearless teaching, and care for students and culture.

A two-time GRAMMY Award winner and world authority on Hawaiian music and hula, she has not only advanced academic understanding of Indigenous performance and Pacific diasporic cultures, but also brought those traditions into the classroom and onto the stage. She has created courses that blend rigorous scholarship with embodied cultural practice, a student favorite being AMCULT 372 Hula Creative Practice, all while attracting students from across the university.

Her research and numerous articles on Indigenous music and performance has reshaped how we think about the histories of sound, dance, and identity. Dr. Stillman’s legacy at Michigan is more than titles and awards, it’s the generations of students she’s challenged, inspired, and lifted, and the cross-cultural bridges she’s helped us all build.

Mahalo, Amy!

The Department of American Culture welcomes Dr. Bethany Hughes as the new Director of the Native American Studies Program (NAS)!

Dr. Hughes is a performance scholar and cultural historian interested in how performance, race, identity, and representation intersect in Native American studies and theatre.

We’re eager for her leadership and the new chapter she will help establish for NAS.