Haskell Indian Nations University (HINU) will develop and implement a comprehensive, interdisciplinary courses for a BS degree program in the Environmental Sciences for Native Americans. This new program will have three primary goals: (a) to help Native Americans attain mastery of the field of environmental sciences, (b) to provide an opportunity for students majoring in other disciplines to acquire basic knowledge of the natural sciences, and (c) to help preserve Native American culture by incorporating historical and traditional knowledge into course content. Student participation in designing course content and pedagogy through summer student-faculty teams will be a major part of the development of the new Environmental Science Curriculum. This facet of the program will foster mentoring and the development of a strong peer teaching nucleus. Participating students will include Environmental Science as well as Elementary Education. This curriculum will be unique because it will integrate traditional Native values and knowledge into the western scientific method. Courses to be developed within the next two years will include Applications of Mathematics for Scientists and Engineers I/II, Geographic Information Systems, Geographic Information Systems Applications, Watershed and Landscape Development, Water Quality and Water Chemistry, Native American Geography, and Ethnobotany. Future courses will include Introduction to Ecological Chemistry, Environmental Policy and Law, Indian Environmental Law, Ethnoentomology, Native American Ecosystem Management, Cultural and Archeological Resources, Resource Economics and Environmental Policy, and Restoration and Conservation Ecology.
