CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) will begin working to develop a new Native American and Indigenous Studies academic program thanks to a $250,000 check presented to the University by Congresswoman Julia Brownley recently.
The presentation ceremony took place Thursday, April 21 in the President’s Courtyard where about 20 campus and community members gathered to hear remarks from Brownley, President Richard Yao, Ph.D., Provost Mitch Avila, Ph.D., and Chumash elder Raudel Bañuelos, who holds an honorary Doctor of Letters from CSUCI.
Bañuelos began the ceremony with a traditional Chumash blessing, filling the courtyard with the smell of sage as he fanned the fragrant herb with an eagle feather and honored the east, west, north and south, all living beings, and the Chumash ancestors.