Four Native American Studies students will discuss their research and experiences in this semester's NAS Directed Study course "Native Leadership and Contemporary Issues."
The presentation is set for 2:30pm Wednesday, December 10, 2025, in the Shenandoah Room of the Mountainlair Student Union. It is the culmination of the students' semester-long efforts.
The students traveled to Seattle in November for the annual National Congress of American Indians convention with Professor Bonnie Brown, NAS Program Coordinator. In preparation for the convention the class studied such topics as traditional and modern understandings of tribal sovereignty, the federal consultation process, Indian Country economics, treaty law, and Indigenous cultural practices such as restorative justice and reciprocity.
At the convention the students attended plenary sessions, cultural programming, and prearranged meetings with Native leaders, as well as committee meetings, hearing debates on various policy resolutions that can ultimately influence federal legislation. The group saw the 2025 Honoring Nations Award presentation by the Harvard Project on Indigenous Governance and Development.
The trip included visiting the Jamestown S'Klallam and Tulalip Reservations, the University of Washington's Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, and Olympic National Park.
The four student panelists have a range of academic interests.
Zeke Bailey of Morgantown is a senior History major with minors in Native American Studies, Religious Studies, and Women's and Gender Studies. He will discuss land and natural resource protections for Native Nations. These include the 2018 Farm Bill's ongoing impact on Native farmers and ranchers, as well as protections for waterways and various species such as salmon and manoomin (wild rice).
Senior Laci Gaidis is from Skaneateles, NY. She is majoring in anthropology with minors in history, art history, and Native American Studies. She will discuss protection of Indigenous sacred sites, specifically Chaco Canyon, and aspects of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).
Kiana Luevano is a sophomore from Weirton majoring in Exercise Physiology with minors in Native American Studies and Leadership Studies. With a plan to become a Physician's Assistant working in gerontology, her remarks will focus on tribes' efforts to address community eldercare needs and preventing elder abuse.
Senior Eli Mallow, from Bruceton Mills, is a Social Work major and Native American Studies minor. His presentation addresses disparities across Native Communities in the US, especially regarding family and child welfare, elder welfare, access to care, and health disparities among Native peoples.
