Native American Longhouse Eena Haws
redesigned campus cultural centers to be completed. The NAL’s mission is to
reflect the many Native American cultures represented at OSU; offer resources
and support to help Native American students become part of the OSU
community; and provide a gathering place for hosting cultural ceremonies,
classes, conferences, lectures, performances, retreats, and community
events. (1) The NAL was established in 1971. The original building was a Quonset
Hut while the new building reflects the style and shape of a traditional Oregon
Coast longhouse. Jones & Jones, a Seattle architectural firm, along with the
input of Native American students at OSU, designed the new Longhouse. (2)
Since the NAL’s establishment, Native American students and faculty
have been striving to make their voices heard and support their community
members. In 1971, OSU student and Klamath tribal member LaVonne Lobert
gave an in-depth interview to OSU’s The Daily Barometer expressing both her
struggles and her pride as a Native American. (3) In 1983, when Linc Kesler, of
Oglala Lakota heritage and currently the Director of the University of British
Columbia First Nations House of Learning, first arrived at OSU as a faculty
member, he partnered with the Educational Opportunities Program to form
OSU’s Indian Education Office (later called the Office of American Indian
Initiatives) to provide support and resources for Native students. (4) Notably,
thirty years later, while Kesler says the situation is currently better for Native
Americans, there is still more that can be done. (5)
In an effort to continue to share their stories, each year the NAL organizes
various events, most notably in November for Native American Heritage
Month and in May for a spring PowWow and Salmon Bake. All events are
open to the OSU and local community. Heritage Month events often reflect
the muli-faceted and diverse traditions of Native American communities and
include educational lectures as well as crafting workshops on topics such as
making dream-catchers and bead-weaving. The spring PowWow is sponsored
by the Native American Student Association, which works in collaboration
with the NAL, and is a two-day event featuring dancing, singing, and
socializing. The annual spring salmon bake, a tradition with roots in the Pacific
Northwest and practiced by many tribes in the region, is an opportunity to
strength the relationships between OSU and Oregon’s tribal communities. (6)
The NAL is a place for both Native American and non-Native American
students. To express this sentiment, after the construction of the new NAL,
staff member Carmen López shared the significance of the words “Eena Haws”:
“Eena” means “beaver” and then “Haws” means “house.” So it
was kind of emphasizing that you don’t have to be Native American
to come to the Longhouse, because we’re all Beavers. All OSU
students, alumni are welcome into the community. (7)
