Community Organizations
Interact with the Native community of Chicago with these resources as a guide.
The Newberry Library
The D’Arcy McNickle Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies was founded in 1972. Its goals are to encourage the use of the Newberry collections in these areas of study; improve the quality of what is written about American Indians and indigenous peoples; educate teachers about American Indian and indigenous cultures, histories, and literatures; assist American Indian tribal and indigenous historians in their research; and provide a meeting ground where scholars, teachers, tribal historians, and others can discuss their work with each other.
Visit Newberry Library website
American Indian Center of Chicago
The mission of the American Indian Center of Chicago is to promote fellowship among Indian people of all Tribes living in metropolitan Chicago and to create bonds of understanding and communication between Indians and non-Indians in this city. To advance the general welfare of American Indians into the metropolitan community life; to foster the economic advancement of Indian people, to sustain cultural, artistic, and avocational pursuits; and to perpetuate Indian cultural values.
Visit American Indian Center of Chicago website
The Chicago American Indian Community Collaborative
The members of the Chicago American Indian Community Collaborative are dedicated to furthering diverse causes and the greater well-being of American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and First Nations people in the Chicago area. We seek to maximize effectiveness by creating a forum for fostering mutual aide, political support, positive public recognition, strategic alliances, collaborations, and partnerships. CAICC will convene organizational leaders and members of the Chicago American Indian community for dialogue, advocacy and planning with the goal of empowering CAICC to better address the issues and needs of the American Indian community.
Visit Chicago American Indian Community Collaborative website
Mitchell Museum of the American Indian
The Mitchell Museum of the American Indian is one of only a handful of museums across the country that focuses exclusively on the art, history, and culture of Native American and First Nation peoples from throughout the United States and Canada. It promotes public understanding of cultural diversity through first voice perspectives.
Visit Mitchell Museum of the American Indian website
Chicago Title VI American Indian Education Program
The Title VI American Indian Education Formula Grant Program offers services to Chicago Public School’s American Indian families, educators, and community members. The staff acts as a liaison between CPS and American Indian families to provide extracurricular activities, after-school programming, culturally oriented community events, and options for higher education/selective enrollment within the school district. Working closely with district curriculum writers, we are able to contemporize American Indians by providing resources such as books, documentaries, activity guides, etc. to the public schools, which in turn benefits the overall image of American Indians and AI students.
Visit Chicago Title VI American Indian Education Program website
American Indian Association of Illinois
The American Indian Association of Illinois provides expert educational programs, extensive academic/social support and financial planning for students and families to access and be successful.
For American Indian people, AIAI programs provide a culturally based foundation of education grounded in tribal knowledge.