Native & Indigenous Initiatives supports relationship development between Pitzer College with local tribes; archives histories of these relationships, and provides student jobs.
NATIVE INDIGENOUS SCHOLAR-IN-RESIDENCE (NISR)
CEC’s Native Indigenous Initiatives (NII) program invites two Native/Indigenous Scholars for the semester to be in collaboration with students, faculty, and their community networks. The purpose of the program is to increase the presence of Native/Indigenous Scholars on campus and mentoring of Native/Indigenous students.
The Native Scholar also actively promotes interdisciplinary platforms of exchange — facilitating dialogue, sharing knowledge and skills, and generating impactful experiences for Native and Indigenous students and the Pitzer Community at large.
MEET THE STUDENT TEAM
JANSIKWE MEDINA-TAYAC, PZ’ 25 | MEDIA STUDIES AND SPANISH
Jansikwe Medina-Tayac (she/her) is a sophomore at Pitzer College from Takoma Park, Maryland. She is majoring in Media Studies and minoring in Spanish. As a Piscataway and Colombian woman, Jansikwe is committed to creating a safe and inclusive space for all native and indigenous students at the 5Cs. She is passionate about community organizing and using film and media to create positive social change. Jansikwe is currently the co President of the native indigenous student Union and works closely with native communities both in Southern California and the DC area.
SARA ORR, PZ’ 25 | ANTHROPOLOGY AND NATIVE AMERICAN INDIGENOUS STUDIES
Sara Orr (She/Her) is a second year at Pitzer College from Springdale, Arkansas. She is majoring in Anthropology and minoring in Native American Indigenous Studies. She is passionate about empowering other native students through community programming and mutual aid organizing. This work is continued with her leadership position in Pitzer’s Native Indigenous Student Union and local activism in her home communities of Oklahoma and Arkansas.
