UMD News Releases

(l-r) Tami Lawlor, program associate, Masters of Tribal Administration and Governance (MTAG) program; Tadd Johnson, professor and department head, American Indian Studies, and director, MTAG program; Elliot Skurich, grant administrative assistant, Sponsored Projects Administration; and Jill Doerfler, associate professor, American Indian Studies.

Duluth, MN – The University of Minnesota Duluth has received a $100,000 Legacy Grant from the Minnesota Historical Society to research the history of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe.

Tadd Johnson, the project manager, says the overreaching goal is a piece that is objective and academic, but also accessible to the average reader, “The Mille Lacs Band has a history that needs to be told and we’re honored to help tell it.” The American Indian Studies department will use the funding to apply scholarly research to the rich history of the Mille Lacs Band, but the historian won’t be working independently. The Mille Lacs Band is forming a committee to work alongside the academic, ensuring accuracy and allowing band members to conduct interviews with first language Ojibwe speakers.

The Mille Lacs Band’s history impacted not just the state, says Johnson, but the entire nation, “This band was active with some national movements including gaming, treaty rights, and the Tribal Self-Governance Act. All of which demonstrate the historic resiliency of this group of people.”

Research for the project is expected to begins this summer.