Academic Program

American Indian & Indigenous Studies (AIIS) at the Uni­ver­sity of Wisconsin-Madison focuses on the his­tory, cul­ture, lan­guages, and expe­ri­ences of Indigenous peo­ples in the United States. Estab­lished in 1972, AIIS connects Amer­i­can Indian and Indigenous stu­dents, Tribal communities, and the Uni­ver­sity. American Indian & Indigenous Studies offers aca­d­e­mic and insti­tu­tional sup­port to Native stu­dents while they study at UW–Madi­son by giving stu­dents oppor­tu­ni­ties to develop close rela­tion­ships with schol­ars in their major field through class­work, com­mu­nity out­reach, and social activ­i­ties. American Indian & Indigenous Studies spon­sors an annual Evening of Sto­ry­telling event, aca­d­e­mic con­fer­ences, and men­tor­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties. Our fac­ulty are among the top in their field and have received numer­ous awards, pub­li­ca­tions, and grants to their credit. Our stu­dents have gone on to work as tribal judges, attor­neys, teach­ers, and social work­ers in Wis­con­sin and beyond.

You can learn more about the history of American Indian & Indigenous Studies at UW-Madison through the American Indian Studies at Fifty: Looking Back & Moving Forward oral history project website.