Tomorrow Mississippi State University will have its first Native American Powwow sponsored by the Holmes Cultural Diversity Center.
The event, which will last from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m., will be held on the Drill Field and will feature many activities for students to see.
There will be bead and jewelry making, dress and shirt making and a basket weaving demonstration to get a glimpse of the Native American culture. For entertainment there will be native drumming and singing and Choctaw dancers. At 11 a.m., there will also be traditional native food.
The event name, borrowed from a Native American term for a celebration, can have slightly different meanings depending on which tribe it comes from.
“It can be very religious and ceremonial, but it can be a means to get together,” said Aretha Jones-Cook, director of Diversity Center.
The first Powwow at MSU serves to teach people about the Native American culture. Starkville school children will attend, and some faculty members at the university are giving extra credit for their students to attend the event.
“My goal is to have students to come out and learn about native culture,” Jones-Cook said.
The center is trying to represent more of the student population through activities such as the Powwow. It is also trying to get more Native-American students to come to MSU.
“By having these kinds of cultural activities, it serves as a great resource strategy to recruit more Native American students to MSU,” Jones-Cook said. “All students benefit from cultural exchange activities,” she added.
Rachel Liddell, a senior majoring in physical education and kinesiology has been helping to organize the event and will be opening the ceremony Wednesday morning.
Liddell became involved with the center because of Jones-Cook, who first came to MSU in the spring.
“She is trying to establish a Native American organization here, so I started coming to meet about that, and I got involved in this,” Liddell said.
“I want people to see (the center) as a place to come and learn about different cultures of the world and that is for minority and majority students,” Jones-Cook said.
Admission to the Powwow is free.