(PDF) (DOC) (JPG)April 15, 2008

Professor Carter Jones Meyer

(Mahwah) – Among the many noteworthy programs that Ramapo College’s Gross Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies has held in recent years, last spring’s Gumpert Teachers’ Workshop, “Native Americans in New Jersey – Subjugation, Exploitation, Marginalization and Survival”stands out for its unique subject matter and its success.

Held at Ramapo College’s Trustees Pavilion on Tuesday, April 15, 2008, the workshop was conceived in light of the report concerning issues confronting the state’s three indigenous Native American tribes recently presented to Governor Jon S. Corzine by the New Jersey Committee on Native American Community Affairs. Attended by more than seventy participants from all over the northern tier of New Jersey, the workshop provided middle and high school educators with the ability to teach about the history and culture of Native American peoples of the United States, particularly those in New Jersey.

The overall goals were to enable New Jersey students to gain knowledge about the forces and processes that shaped the history and culture of the Native American peoples in their midst, and to obtain an understanding of the critical issues of discrimination, civil rights, citizenship, activism and environmental justice.

Professor Maria Lawrence

The speakers and their topics were: Autumn Wind Scott, artist and member of the N.J. Commission on American Indian Affairs, “Civil Rights, Education and Environmental Justice in the Spotlight: the Report of the New Jersey Committee on Native American Community Affairs;” Dr. Carter Jones Meyer, professor of History at Ramapo College, “The Appropriation of Native American Culture;” Dr. Maria Lawrence, professor of Elementary Education at Rhode Island College, “The Native American Experience in New Jersey Compared: At Home and Abroad;” and Joel Barrett, a teacher at Old Turnpike School in Califon, New Jersey and an alumnus of Ramapo College, “Bringing the Story of Native Americans into the Classroom.”

Also taking part in the workshop was Dr. Paul Winkler, executive director of the New Jersey State Commission on Holocaust Education, who provided an overview of the State Mandate on Holocaust Education and how it related specifically to the situation of Native Americans in New Jersey.

As evidenced by participants’ evaluations and follow-up with presenters, the workshop was a gratifying success and will continue to play a role in bringing high-quality learning about the history and present-day situation of Native Americans in New Jersey.

Joel Barrett, Ramapo College ’06

Autumn Wind Scott

Dr. Paul Winkler

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