America250 honors the government-to-government relationship between Tribal nations and the United States. We are committed to partnering with Tribal nations, Native Hawaiians, Intertribal organizations and communities to engage with America’s past, understand our present and envision a future together.
Led by Andrei Jacobs (Yup’ik & Inupiaq), Senior Manager of Tribal Partnerships, America250 is working with Native communities to build and foster relationships, develop trust and grow awareness about the semiquincentennial commemoration.
That work starts with engaging the entire Native community, which is invited to regular virtual roundtables to share their perspectives on America’s 250th anniversary. The next national roundtable will be held this fall during the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries and Museums’ annual conference in October.
In addition, to grow Native engagement and participation in the 250th, America250 is facilitating a Tribal Advisory Group (TAG). TAG meetings offer a forum for Native community representatives to directly shape programming and planning throughout the whole commemorative period. In February of 2022, America250 contacted all 574 federally-recognized Tribes inviting them to give input during these quarterly-held meetings. The next TAG meeting is on Wednesday, October 19, from 3 to 4 p.m. EST.
America250 believes it is crucial that Tribal nations and Native-led organizations help shape how we honor our past 250 years and look forward to our next 250. To amplify that work, America250 is building partnership and programming capacity to facilitate collaboration, evaluating new strategies and opportunities around working with Native communities and continuously incorporating feedback from TAG and roundtable meetings.
Jacobs recently sat down for an interview on these efforts with John Winters, a Ph.D. research associate in New York history for the Institute for Thomas Paine Studies at Iona College. Check out the podcast interview for a deeper dive into America250’s Tribal partnership development. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Buzzsprout.
America’s Field Trip
Engaging students nationwide to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary!
A new contest inviting students in grades 3–12 to share their perspectives on what America means to them — and earn the opportunity to participate in field trip experiences at some of the nation’s most iconic historic and cultural landmarks.