Sinte Gleska University (SGU) is a public tribal land-grant university in Mission, South Dakota, on the Rosebud Indian Reservation. It is a Brulé Lakota Indian Reservation home to the Sicangu (Burnt Thigh). SGU has an enrollment of 828 full and part-time students.American Indian Higher Education Consortium It is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.Sinte Gleska University: Statement of Accreditation Status.
History SGU was charted by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in 1970 and held its first classes on February 3, 1971. SGU was named for the Brulé Lakota chief Sinte Gleska."SGU Main Page." Sinte Gleska University. 2009 (retrieved December 23, 2010) The founding Board President was Lakota elder Stanley Red Bird Sr., and Joseph M. Marshall III, the first published writer in Lakota, was a founder as well. In 1994, the college was designated a land-grant college alongside 31 other tribal colleges.
Partnerships The college is a member of the American Indian Higher Education Consortium, a community of tribally and federally chartered institutions working to strengthen tribal nations. Tribal colleges generally serve geographically isolated populations who have no other means accessing higher education; they also are a means for the tribes to teach subjects from the perspectives of their cultures, as well as specific classes in their cultures.
Academics Undergraduate demographics as of Fall 2023 Race and ethnicityTotal American Indian/Alaska Native White Economic diversity Low-income Affluent
SGU describes its approach to higher education as focusing on "an educational direction and philosophy that both promotes and preserves our Lakol Wicohan (traditional way of life) for the benefit of our future generations."
The university offers associate degrees, bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, certificates, and vocational programs through seven academic undergraduate departments:
Great Plains Art Institute Arts and Sciences Business Education Human Services Lakota Studies Institute of Technologies (vocational/career education)
The college has programs in Lakota studies,"Academics." Sinte Gleska University. 2009 (retrieved December 23, 2010) including the language and aesthetics.
The Great Plains Art Institute of the University offers AA and BA degrees in art and a BAAE degree in art education."Great Plains Art Institute." Sinte Gleska University. 2007 (retrieved December 23, 2010)
In 1988, SGU established the annual Northern Plains Indian Art Market in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, which included a juried art show, art market, powwow, and Oscar Howe lecture. The market aimed to educate students and the community about Northern Plains art, philosophy, dance, and music. In 2023, SGU canceled the market, citing financial issues and decreasing participation from students.
SGU has partnered with Red Crow Community College and Old Sun Community College, both in Alberta, Canada, enabling them to offer a master's degree in education, with an emphasis in early childhood special education."First Nations Colleges Offer SGU Master's" , Tribal College Journal, Volume 16 Spring 2005 Issue No. 3. (retrieved December 23, 2010)
Notable faculty LeAnne Howe (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma) Joe L. Kincheloe (1950–2008) Simon J. Ortiz (Acoma Pueblo) Albert White Hat (1929–2013) Doris Leader Charge (1930–2001)
See also American Indian College Fund (AICF)
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