Native American Cultural Center

Who We Are and Where We Come From

The Native American history is one of working to improve the quality of life for American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and Indigenous Pacific Islanders. Our community reaches out to new students and their families to help them adjust to life at Stanford—to help them realize their goals and prepare for the future.

The roots of the Native American Community at Stanford date back earlier than the institution itself. Built on land originally inhabited by the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, Stanford University opened its doors in 1891. Matriculating in 1894, John Milton Oskison was the first Native American to graduate from Stanford in 1898. Fueled by the spirit of social and political change during the 1960s, a group of Native students worked with the university administration to increase educational opportunities for Natives at Stanford. Since then, our numbers have increased, and students have continued to take an active role in increasing opportunities for our community at Stanford. Today, there are more than 450 undergraduate and graduate students representing more than 50 tribes and island communities studying at Stanford.