The Monacan nation had ties to Virginia Tech because the university was built on the Tutelo/Monacan homeland. The relationship between the tribe and the university really began to develop, however, when Sam Cook, associate professor and director of American Indian studies, began visiting the tribe’s Amherst County headquarters in 1995.
“Sam was a key player in bringing Tech to us and building the friendship we have today,” Branham said. “I’ll always be thankful for what you did for me, Sam.”
Cook, a presidential adviser on American Indian initiatives, has worked closely with the Monacan tribe. In the year In 1999, he helped spearhead Virginia Tech’s American Indian Youth League.
“This related scholarship is first and foremost an indication of good faith and certainly an indication that President Sands has not been listening,” Cook said. He was the first Virginia Tech president to be involved with tribes and willing to meet regularly with tribal leaders. I am impressed that he is willing to do this.”
In June, Sands spoke at a conference of tribal leaders at Virginia Tech, which included leaders from most of Virginia’s recognized American Indian tribes.
Cook said the new scholarship is especially important in light of the history of education and Native Americans in Virginia. The original charter of the College of William and Mary included a mandate to educate Native Americans for the sake of integration, and more recently, Native Americans were barred from attending public schools until 1963.
“We have a lot of things to do. … This is a good start,” Cook said.
Melissa Fairclose, director of Virginia Tech’s American Indian and Native Community Center, said the speed of the scholarship was impressive.
“I was surprised at how quickly that happened and that we’re already in the fall semester,” Fairclose said.
It remains to be determined how many students will benefit immediately because many tribes have not yet awarded scholarships for the fall, but the new funding is important to this number of current and future students, Fairclose said.
“Anything we can do to make college more accessible is a good thing, especially for communities that historically haven’t had the same college or generational resources,” Fairclose said. I think it would be helpful just to have an understanding of the scholarship.
