On May 10, the Native American Program at Dartmouth hosted the 53rd Annual Dartmouth Powwow in the West Gym, featuring Indigenous dances and ceremonies.
Inclement weather limited the Powwow this year, more than halving the number of participants, Powwow co-chair and Native Americans at Dartmouth co-president Sydney Hoose ’25 said. It also kept away external vendors, who in the past have sold a variety of accessories, including clothing and jewelry.
Still, the event is the second largest Powwow in the Northeast, drawing together approximately 400 people from across the region, according to Hoose.
The Powwow gives indigenous students an opportunity to “feel connected with home” as well as connect with Indigenous communities in the Upper Valley, according to Hoose.
“It’s also a great way for Native Americans in the greater Upper Valley communities or neighboring states to come by and experience their culture and dance and be in ceremony and also community with one another,” Hoose said.
Ben Cashwell ’28 said the Powwow is “good medicine” — a term which he said encompasses “the good music, the good dancing [and] the good friendships and bonds.”
Although there were no external vendors, students ran a few stands. Some sold fry bread to help pay for Powwow next year. The Beading and Crafting Circle, a subgroup within NAD, sold traditional beadwork and jewelry. Cashwell sold items from his Indigenous streetwear brand, “Unrecognized Co.” He said it was “super cool” to “be able to share personal crafts that we make with our Dartmouth community.”
The Powwow also featured song performances from the Hōkūpa`a, Dartmouth’s Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander student group, and Alaska Native Song and Dance, as well as a dance competition from Native Dance Nations Society, a group for students to learn traditional dancing.
“It was just the most fun to watch because you get to see all these dancers of all the different styles come together and dance at the same time,” Cashwell said.
The event also included the annual senior sweetgrass ceremony — where graduating students were given sweetgrass. Some attendees also performed what Cashwell called the “Dartmouth classic” potato dance, where each pair of participants balances a potato between their foreheads while dancing to the drum.
The Powwow is an opportunity for students to connect with the broader Native American alumni group, colloquially called “Big NAD.” John Sirois ’91, who gave the opening prayer for the ceremony, said the Powwow is a “cornerstone” for the Native American community to feel connected and also to have an impact on the larger Dartmouth community.
“It was always fun to see some of my other, [non-Native] classmates,” Sirois added. “It really provides an educational entry point.”
Hoose said that she is “grateful” for Native American community at Dartmouth and encourages people to go to next year’s Powwow.
“It’s been a home away from home for me up here, and I’m forever grateful for the friendships and experiences I’ve had,” Hoose said.
