Indigenous Cultures

The 2024 Indigenous Arts Summer Encounter.
Photo by Rene Renteria

The Indigenous Youth Summer Encounter closing ceremony.
Photo by Rene Renteria

Indigenous Cultures Institute of San Marcos hosted its 13th Youth Arts Summer Encounter June 24-29 at Cuauhtemoc Hall. The annual program allows students to learn about their Native American heritage.

This year, Marial Quezada, the Indigenous Cultures Institute’s Education Programs Director, led instruction along with eight additional Native American instructors. The instructors taught art-related classes and workshops to students ages 10 to 14. Every morning, the Youth Arts Encounter began at 8 a.m. and ended at 5 p.m. On Saturday, participants hold a final gathering along the shores of the Sacred Springs (Spring Lake) for a water ceremony and then a pilgrimage to the Sacred Springs Burial Grounds to honor the ancestors. Students, their families, friends and the general public were invited to attend.

The ICI teaches classes through a holistic pedagogy based on the values of the students’ indigenous heritage. These Native American values promote responsibility to family, community and the environment, supports finishing high school, encourages enrollment in higher education and results in positive contributions to society.

Students in the Youth Arts Encounter learned their Creation Story. In addition, they learned about food justice and engaged in visual arts, music, dance, writing and cooking/nutrition activities that tied into teachings of indigenous food ways and wellness. Students were also introduced to the Coahuiltecan language, which was spoken by indigenous ancestors who lived and thrived consistently in this area for over 13,000 years.

During the Youth Arts Encounter, instructors teach a new set of activities that build on the previous day’s knowledge. Students start art projects that they work on each day and complete over the full week. Elders engage the students in a series of talks to learn about families, respect and responsibility to communities and Mother Earth. Each talk conveys knowledge that is learned and applied through the arts over the weeklong experience.

The ICI believes that as indigenous people, we come into this world bearing the responsibility for protecting Mother Earth. The teachings of this year’s program were rooted in caring for and protecting Mother Earth — Tap Tai in Coahuiltecan. Students learn to become good stewards of Mother Earth in addressing environmental issues, which the Institute stresses during a trip to Spring Lake to visit the Sacred Springs. ICI teaches indigenous knowledge at a deep level directly from Native elders and instructors, as well as from ancient traditions passed down for generations. Parents comment on observing immediate changes in attitude about school, respect and responsibility while students participate in the program. This unique educational experience is not provided in the schools — knowledge imparted during the encounter is designed to enhance what the schools teach.

“We are appreciative of the support we have continuously received from La Sociedad Mutualista de Cuauhtemoc Board of Directors for providing an important community space to host the Indigenous Arts Summer Encounter,” Dr. Mario Garza, Chair of the Board of Elders, said. “Cuauhtemoc Hall has been a vital community space for generations of Indigenous families over the last eighty years. The program is made possible with the funding support of the City of San Marcos Arts Commission, Texas Commission on the Arts, Tomblin Family Foundation, Burdine Johnson Foundation, San Marcos Lions Club, Hays County and San Marcos Unitarian Universalist Fellowship.”

The Indigenous Cultures Institute was founded in 2006 by members of the Miakan/Garza Band, one of the over six-hundred bands of Indigenous peoples that resided in Texas and northeastern Mexico when the Spaniards first arrived.

The 83rd Legislature recognized the Miakan-Garza Band as a Texas Indian tribe with “immeasurable contributions to the State of Texas.” Members of the Miakan-Garza Band still practice traditional ceremonies and maintain long-held family ties.

Mario Garza, PhD, and Maria Rocha, Liaison to the Board of Elders for the Indigenous Cultures Institute, have been the leadership of the organization since its founding. Today, a Pilam Circle of four individuals oversee and manage the daily operations of the institute, which continues to develop high-quality indigenous programming for our communities.