Native Student Program

• The program includes a three-day orientation for first-year and transfer students.
• Members gather weekly for workshops and receive guidance that promotes academic success, including academic counseling.
• Through faculty, staff and peer interaction, the program also offers opportunities to engage for growth and success beyond graduation.

• Opportunities to attend conferences and to remain connected to Native American culture and history.
• A Native Identity Series is offered each year, culminating in a spring trip to museums, Native communities or historical sites. Past trips have included visits to the Ganondagan State Historical Site in Victor, New York; the Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community in Fonda, New York; and the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

Darrin White
(he/him/his)
Coordinator

Nicole Smoke
(she/her/hers)
Graduate Assistant
Mohawk – Akwesasne

Rhiannon Abrams
(she/her/hers)
Academic Consultant
Mohawk – Six Nations, Potawatomi

Lainey Scanlan
(she/her/hers)
Undergraduate Intern
Seneca

The Indigenous New Student Orientation is designed for all Indigenous first-year and transfer students to get a head start on campus. Some highlights of our orientation include:

• Learning about campus resources and Indigenous support.
• Connecting with Indigenous faculty and staff.
• Dinner with Syracuse University Native Faculty and Staff at the Sheraton Hotel.

This program is specially designed to explore and discuss issues that may be unique to students identifying as Indigenous. The program is open to anyone regardless of their race, ethnicity or national origin. If you’re interested in participating in the 2024 Indigenous New Student Orientation, please complete the registration form by Thursday, July 27.

The Ionkerihonnien:ni Guide Program was created in 2017 by a then-undergraduate student in the Native Student Program, Nicole Smoke. This is an Indigenized peer mentorship program within the Native Student Program, intended to support Indigenous first-year and transfer students with adjusting to campus life, including, but not limited to, academics, finding community and more. In our communities, we do not believe in hierarchies; therefore, within the Ionkerihonnien:ni Guide Program, we intentionally learn and teach one another.

This program includes weekly workshops, one-on-one guidance and advising/support from staff. If you’re interested in joining the program, reach out directly to our graduate assistant, Nicole Smoke, at nmsmoke@syr.edu.

Check out the Third Annual Three Sisters Sovereignty Garden Planting in Pete’s Giving Garden on Syracuse University’s South Campus. This project was led by Syracuse alum Ethan Tyo ’17 G’23, a member of the Akwesasne Mohawk Tribe. Ethan is a former food studies graduate student in the Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics, where he combined his passion for food with an enthusiasm to educate others about his roots.

The Native Student Program hosts the Annual Indigenous Graduation Reception for graduating students and their families. This reception gives everyone an opportunity to welcome, recognize and congratulate degree recipients. For more information, contact Darrin White at ddwhite@syr.edu.