The 20th annual Pow Wow at Washington University in St. Louis, a festival of American Indian cultures, will be held Saturday, April 10, in the Field House. This event, hosted by the Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies at the Brown School, is free and open to the public.
Visitors and participants will be able to enjoy dancing, singing, drumming, arts, crafts and food. Intertribal and contest dancing take place at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. Traditional arts and crafts booths open at 10 a.m.
“This is an event that brings together the Washington University community, the broader St. Louis community, and dancers and spectators from across Indian Country,” says Kellie Szczepaniec, member of the Seneca Nation and Buder Scholar.
“Currently, it is the only Pow Wow within 100 miles of St. Louis and is viewed by the Native community as a cultural event they can count upon each year,” she says.
There also will be booths at the event providing information on American Indian studies programs throughout the country, policy initiatives that impact Indian Country, and education issues that affect Native people.
The theme of this year’s events is “Honoring Kathryn Buder’s Vision: Listening to the Native Voice.”
“The theme of honoring the educational accomplishments of past Buder graduates was chosen to celebrate the 20-year anniversary of the Kathryn M. Buder Center,” says Lakota Mowrer, member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Buder Scholar.
“This theme highlights Native leadership and brings forth a heartfelt issue affecting Native Americans,” Mowrer says.
The Pow Wow serves as the closing event for the first Buder Alumni Social Work Conference.
The goal of the conference slated for Thursday, April 8, and Friday, April 9, is to bring together Buder alumni to share information about their current work and best practices; create stronger collaborations across tribes and Native communities; and to lay the groundwork for a new professional leadership network among individuals practicing social work in Indian Country.
“Indian country needs effective leaders within the field of social work as never before, and the Buder Center intends to provide them,” says Stephanie Kettler, interim director for the Buder Center.
“The individuals who graduate from the Buder Center are creating successive generations of American Indian citizens prepared to actively contribute to the social development of their respective communities,” Kettler says. “Through our 20th anniversary celebrations, we also hope to honor the name and memory of Kathryn M. Buder, our founder and benefactor who provided crucial benefit to current and future generations of American Indians.”
The Buder Center, the American Indian Student Association, the Seneca Tribe, the Women’s Society and several departments as well as area businesses, organizations and individuals sponsor the Pow Wow.
For more information, call (314) 935-4510 or visit buder.wustl.edu.
Comments and respectful dialogue are encouraged, but content will be moderated. Please, no personal attacks, obscenity or profanity, selling of commercial products, or endorsements of political candidates or positions. We reserve the right to remove any inappropriate comments. We also cannot address individual medical concerns or provide medical advice in this forum.