Our Mission
Onward & Rock Chalk
“As Acting Associate Vice Chancellor for Sovereign Partnerships, my priority is to move this work forward in ways that honor Tribal sovereignty and strengthen trust-based relationships. By deepening our partnerships with Tribal Nations, Haskell Indian Nations University, and Indigenous communities, we are committed to collaboration that is guided by respect, reciprocity, and shared purpose. Together, we will build pathways that support Indigenous students, communities, and futures - now and for generations to come.”
-Dr. Peterson
What our office does:
Cultivate a community of care that fosters the well-being of students, faculty, and staff that are tribal citizens on KU’s campus and beyond.
- Build systems of education for, about, and with Native Nations, communities, and institutions for the purpose of growing their sovereign capacities to pursue their own goals.
- Conduct research for, about, and with Native Nations, communities, and institutions for the purpose of growing their sovereign capacities to pursue their own goals.
- Cultivate healthy relationships by providing balanced and reciprocal services for and with Native Nations, communities, and institutions for the purpose of growing their sovereign capacities to pursue their own goals.
2024-2025 Annual Report
Our Legacy
Established in 2024, the Office of Sovereign Partnerships & Indigenous Initiatives lifts our institutional mission to educate leaders, build healthy communities and make discoveries that change the world.
We are forever indebted to those in our community for the work built before 2024, from the work of Academic Success and its Office of Native American Initiatives (NAI) we were able to evolve to what we are now. Even greater, before NAI's establishments in 2022, the students, staff, and faculty, especially the Native Faculty Staff Council, along with our Haskell community, served as the true thought partners who advocated for sovereign partnerships and Indigneous initiatives at KU.
