SMSC Announces Endowed Scholarship Recipients at the University of Minnesota

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC) today announced nine new recipients of the SMSC Endowed Scholarship at the University of Minnesota for the 2014-2015 academic year. This scholarship program is designed to recruit and retain talented American Indian students with demonstrated financial need.

Since the program began in 2009, 192 students from 48 different tribes in 18 states have received this scholarship. Eighty-three of them are enrolled this year: 59 undergraduate students and 24 graduate students.

The nine new scholarship recipients for the 2014-2015 academic year come from across the United States and from seven different tribes.

· 4 students are from Minnesota tribes

· 5 are undergraduates; 4 are graduate students

· 6 students attend the University of Minnesota Duluth; 3 attend the Twin Cities campus

· 3 students are enrolled in the Master of Tribal Administration and Governance Program at the University of Minnesota Duluth

· Some of the students’ majors include elementary education, political science, environmental studies, and public affairs.

The SMSC Endowed Scholarship was established through a $2.5 million gift from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. The University of Minnesota matches the interest earned on this endowment fund with proceeds dedicated to providing scholarships for qualified American Indian students. The University’s Office for Equity and Diversity administers the scholarship.

The primary goal of the SMSC Endowed Scholarship is to support incoming University of Minnesota freshmen and transfer students who demonstrate financial need. Scholarships may also be awarded to newly admitted graduate and professional students in specific disciplines. For undergraduates, scholarships are renewable for up to four years or until graduation (whichever comes first), contingent upon academic performance. For graduate and professional students, the length of funding is contingent upon the school of enrollment, academic performance, and degree program, and is determined on a case-by-case basis.

The 2014-2015 SMSC Endowed Scholarship recipients include:

· Raven Ziegler, Lower Brule Sioux Tribe

· Gerard Sordelet, Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

· Misty Peterson, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

· Hannah Smith, White Earth Nation

· Eli Balber-Herman, Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

· Chilah Brown, Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe

· Phillip Gullikson, Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Tribes

· Jason Weaver, Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe

· Robert Budreau, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa