Gathering Under the Stars

Gathering Under the Stars

Native and non-native families and individuals will gather in southern California’s Coachella Valley on Saturday, November 9.

By California Indian Nations College

Date and time

Saturday, November 9 · 4 - 7pm PST

Location

UC Riverside-Palm Desert

75080 Frank Sinatra Drive Palm Desert, CA 92211

About this event

Hundreds of Native and non-native families and individuals will gather in southern California’s Coachella Valley on Saturday, November 9, 2024 for the 6th annual Gathering (Under the Stars).


Established to spotlight and celebrate the cultures among local tribal communities, Gathering is California Indian Nations College’s (CINC) signature event during Native American Heritage Month. The evening will include traditional song, food, art, & dance and is a public demonstration of Native resilience, creativity, and cultural tradition.


The College was chartered by the Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians, with a mission of offering a culturally relevant academic curriculum rooted in Native American values and to provide personalized support to advance the success of Native and non-Native students. Founded in 2017, CINC enrolled 43 students that first fall semester, and this fall has a student enrollment of 149. With the generous support of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, CINC developed the Path Breakers Program which is dedicated to ensuring each student receives the individualized support necessary to ensure a successful transition to CINC and then on to four-year, or another advanced academic setting.


College collaborators include local Tribes, College of the Desert, University of California, Riverside, California State University, San Bernardino, the Theresa A. Mike Scholarship Foundation, and Native American educators. The College is pursuing institutional accreditation through the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges and will become the only accredited tribal college in California. To learn more, or to donate to support native education, please visit www.CINCollege.org


The Gathering will take place on the University of California, Riverside’s beautiful Palm Desert campus. Conveniently located one mile south of Interstate 10, the campus is at the intersection of Cook Street and Frank Sinatra Drive. Several major hotels are located nearby, and ample free parking surrounds the campus. Admission is free with gates opening at 4pm.


Please address questions and requests for vendor space to Gathering@CINCollege.org or 760.363.4383.

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California Indian Nations College

The California Indian Nations College began with a “strategic planning committee (CINC SPC)” comprised of over 35 members and is a coalition of constituents from the local Indian Community within the Southern California region. The CINC SPC supports a vision to establish a two-year accredited college with a curriculum that incorporates indigenous culture, native language revitalization along with the re-institutionalization of traditional Native American values.

With the support of the local indigenous community, Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians, College of the Desert, and the Native American educators who serve on the CINC SPC, CINC has become an integral part of an initiative supported by UC Riverside’s Chancellor Wilcox and the UCR Chancellor’s Native American Advisory Committee to create this college for all indigenous Nations in- and potentially outside the state of California. Given this high-level professional support, CINC will serve as a pipeline for future UCR students and all other desired universities with strong Native American studies and culture.

According to the American Indian Higher Education Consortium, there are currently 37 accredited Tribal Colleges within the United States of America, with most positioned in the North and Northwest; yet not one accredited Tribal College is located within the State of California. Thus, CINC, located in Southern California, will be a monumental establishment for the future of all indigenous people in the southwest region and beyond.

With this said and with the continued dedication of the CINC Strategic Planning Committee, the CINC Foundation Board, and with the support and partnership with Twenty-nine Palms of Mission Indians, College of the Desert and the University of California, Riverside, CINC offered the first semester of accredited courses in Fall 2018.

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