American Indian Center aims to use growth to aid community
The headquarters of the nonprofit American Indian Center of Arkansas are on the 13th floor of 400 W. Capitol Ave., in downtown Little Rock. The lobby is not only a place to welcome visitors, but also an area to display examples of Native American drums and regalia, including an intricate, patterned red “jingle” dress with dozens of conical, silver tobacco tins attached to it.
The center, which is led by a Native American-Alaska Native board of directors, was founded in 1977 with a mission to improve the quality of life for Native Americans in Arkansas through job training and placement, mental health services, suicide prevention, counseling and education programs. The past few years have been a period of growth for the center. It has about 30 employees and recently moved to its new, larger offices.
Star Jackson came to work at the center 12 years ago and is now its executive director. Before she joined the center, she worked as an accountant for the Arkansas Department of Education.
“I was good at it, but I didn’t like my job,” she said during an interview last month in the center’s conference room. “I didn’t feel fulfilled.”
She’d lived for a while on a reservation in Oklahoma with her stepfather while growing up and was intrigued when she saw a help wanted ad for the center in the Democrat-Gazette.
“I felt it calling to me,” she recalled. “I really felt this was somewhere I needed to invest some time. I told (then-executive director Lois Crittenden) that even if she didn’t hire me, I would love to volunteer.”
Jackson was hired — at a significant pay cut, she adds — and went to work. She was named executive director last year.
“We have really grown. Our budget has gone from $3 million to $11 million,” she said. “We went from nine staff members four years ago to about 30 now. It’s been overwhelming.”
Two new center branches will open soon in Tontitown and Fort Smith, Jackson added.
The center is funded by grants, and the recent growth has come from recognizing the needs of the Indigenous community of Arkansas, Jackson said. A push for more grants in 2022 had greater-than-expected results.
“Myself and our grant writing team will get in there and search for those grants,” Jackson said. “We just went to writing … we did not expect to get every grant that year, that’s unheard of — but every single grant that we wrote, we got.”
Grant director Jewel Cunningham has been at the center since 2022. She oversees grants from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration.
“We have a suicide and substance misuse prevention program for Native youth, 24 and under, and we help people get into therapy,” Cunningham said. “We’re working with state call centers to make sure the services that Native people receive through those call centers are culturally informed.”
There is also a medicated assisted drug treatment program through the administration that the center offers.
“We have partners that distribute the medication, and we also provide addiction counseling and therapy as well,” said Cunningham, who is originally from Oklahoma.
Other programs include Accessing Choices in Education, Native Connections, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Arkansas Recovery Partnership and Senior Community Service Employment Program.
There are about 115,000 Native Americans in Arkansas, according to the U.S. census. Participants in the center’s programs typically are required to have a tribal identification card and be a resident of Arkansas.
“Some programs don’t require tribal ID,” Cunningham noted, adding that if a person can prove a relative has Indian descendency then that person can take part in some programs.
Not all of the staff are Native Americans, but many are and that helps when participants might be suspicious of programs through other agencies.
“There can be mistrust from Native people when accessing services, whether it’s health care or social services, because of their relationship with the government and the history there,” Cunningham said. “We provide a unique aspect. People can come here and see regalia and be greeted by Native people. We know they might not trust us at first, but we’re going to nourish those relationships with each of our participants and make sure they know we will support them in any way we can.”
Still, the center partners with the Department of Human Services and other providers and nonprofits when its services don’t reach all aspects participants need.
“If there is a need we know we can’t fill, we are out there searching for a solution,” Jackson said.
“There are things grants won’t cover,” said Solita Johnson, director of outreach and development. She mentioned raising money to send young people in the Native Connections program to a pow-wow in Oklahoma.
“It’s important for mental health, for cultural reasons, to be able to do those kinds of things,” she said.
Looking ahead, November is Native American Heritage Month and the center is planning its first American Indian Center of Arkansas Gala for 6:30 p.m., Nov. 22 at the Clinton Presidential Center.
“We’ve been here since the ’70s, but a lot of people don’t know that we are here,” Jackson said. “This has been a year of outreach and partnerships and growth for us. We’d really love to see every one of our partners come to our gala.”
Tickets will go on sale sometime in mid-May, Johnson said, adding that the event “is going to be amazing.”
For more information, visit aicago.org.