Edukwe Consulting

Miigwetch to the folks and departments of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe for planning and organizing the 2025 Indigenous Youth Fashion Show.

This event is really special:
1. It prioritizes Indigenous youth.
2. Youth learn and share with each other and the community what "respect" means to them.
3. Community members volunteer their time and talents by making a young person a ribbon skirt, ribbon shirt, or ribbon pants.
4. The youth are cheered on and encouraged as they walk across the stage to the sound of Indigenous musicians.
5. The community prays together and then eats together.

I was so very honored to be invited to speak and share with our youth and community about respect.

It was a beautiful event!

Join us for the Dance for Mother Earth Pow-Wow on March 22-23, 2025.
This is being hosted by the University of Michigan Native American Student Association! We are thankful for the invitation and can't wait to see you all there.

Join us at the Central Michigan University-Celebrating Life Pow-Wow
March 29-30, 2025
Students have been busy planning and organizing this gathering while also maintaining their studies.
There will be singing, dancing, visiting, eating, shopping, and lots of laughter. There's something for everyone!

Learning Anishinaabemowin not only connects us with our rich cultural identity but also strengthens our community. By embracing our language, we honor our ancestors and ensure that our practices live on for future generations. Here are some phrases to get you started:

Anishinaabemodaa = Let’s speak the Anishinaabe language!

Nindanishinaabem = I speak Anishinaabemowin.

Gidanishinaabem ina? = Do you speak Anishinaabemowin?

Want to learn more phrases?

Check out the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians website's Gijigowi Anishinaabemowin Language Department (GALD) for a wealth of resources to help you on your language journey!

Ltbbodawa-nsn.gov/departments/language/

Lunch & Learn: Indigenizing Education with Melissa Isaac

In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, join us for an enlightening session with Melissa Isaac!

When: November 26 at 12:00 PM
Where: SCTC Community Room

- Insightful discussion on the importance of Indigenizing education.
- Engaging dialogue and Q&A with Melissa Isaac.
- A chance to connect with fellow community members over lunch.

Lunch will be provided by Chef Sam Anglin.

The University of Michigan, Native American Student Association hosted the Big Ten Native Student Gathering in October! 💛💙
All of the Native American student groups from Big Ten universities across Turtle Island come together to visit and support each other in their post secondary endeavors. 🙌🏽
We can say, with absolute certainty, the futures of Tribal Nations across Turtle Island are in good hands! These young relatives are working hard to succeed in their studies to serve their communities while also revitalizing their languages and ceremonies! 🥰

Chi-Miigwetch for the invitation to share stories, visit, and connect. It was an honor to be in community with everyone!

It's been awhile relatives! We have a lot of catching up to do. 😁

Now that the elections have passed. We have good news! Melissa won her race and was elected by the voters to serve a 6 year term on the Mt. Pleasant Public Schools (MPPS)Board of Education! 💙💛 She took her Oath of Office on Thursday, November 21, 2024 (pictured here). 🙋🏽‍♀️

This is history-making results. While the sovereign nation of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe (SCIT) and MPPS share a geo-political relationship AND the largest minority population at MPPS is Native American, a SCIT Tribal Citizen has never been elected to the board....until now! 🫶🏾

Melissa is thankful for the confidence of the voters and ready to serve. 💕😊

Stay tuned to see what exciting things Edukwe Consulting has been up to over the last few months! 🙌🏽

Aanii relatives! 👋🏾

We haven't posted in awhile and for that we apologize. While our socials have been quiet, the good work continues! 😁

Melissa is running for local office! Campaign season is in full swing. Make sure you're registered to vote! 🗳 We'll update about that at another time.

On this Michigan Indian Day, we will be supporting The Children's Pow-Wow at the Michigan Indian Industrial Boarding School in Mt. Pleasant, MI. 🧡

Pictures to come! 📷

Exciting news! We are now certified to facilitate the Parent Cafe through Be Strong Families! We also add Indigenous razzle dazzle to the experience! 🙌🏽

The Parent Cafe brings parents together in a peer to peer manner to support each other through structured conversation. Together, they learn from each other how to implement 5 Family Protective Factors in their daily lives! 💕

It is a great way to bring parents together to support one another in their journey to raising healthy, happy families! ❤️

Contact us to learn more about how we can support the families in your community. 🫶🏾

Chi-Miigwetch to The Whitener Group for the invitation to serve as the keynote speaker for the Healing Together: 6th Annual Noojimo'iwewin-The Violence Against Women Act and Indian Child Welfare Act Training.
Another chi-miigwetch to the Bay Mills Indian Community of Gnoozhekaaning for hosting this gathering!

"ICWA isn't just legal work, it's spiritual work.*

Our young people carry their own wisdom. When they share, we need to be wise and hear them. 🫶🏾

We have a lot of work to do and support to provide our next generation. We need to do better for them! ❤️✊🏾