This week was a kick-off week for my project I suppose. I had met with my supervisor from AIIU and got some assignments from her for this week. I was really surprised yet relieved that she was so excited and well prepared going into this. I was really concerned that I would be the only one taking this project seriously, but I was wrong. I got to spend a lot of time at my desk this week just researching. She wanted me to get to know my tribes back home. It had bee a long time since I had done anything dealing with all of the reservations and had forgotten most of the names. It was a good refresher course for me. I also was told to visit the museum in Saint Paul and do more research on the Native Americans in Minnesota and in history here. I am not a big history buff, but I ended up spending a very good amount of time there. I got into every exhibit I looked at and was surprised at how much of the history here included Native Americans and in a good light. I also learned about some of the darker side that included boarding schools for assimilation and mass executions ordered by President Lincoln. There were "white men" that fought for Native Americans at that time; one of note was a Bishop. That was my week at a glance. I have gained a lot of knowledge this week but still have lots left to learn and discover. This next week will most likely be similar but this is almost expected. I cannot just walk in uninformed and start to mingle with these people. I need to know who I am working with. This is the hard work now, play later idea. All of my research will lead to more interactivity down the road.
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