Photographer Matika Wilbur will take to the stage to present “Celebrating Native Language and Culture” at Seminole State College’s Jeff Johnston Auditorium on Oct. 5 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. The event is sponsored by SSC’s Native American Serving Non-Tribal Institutions (NASNTI) federal grant program.

Wilbur, a visual storyteller hailing from the Swinomish and Tulalip peoples of coastal Washington, embarked on a journey in 2012 to change the way people perceive Native America through the power of photography.

Wilbur, initially a fashion and commercial photographer in Los Angeles, honed her craft at the Brooks Institute of Photography. However, she was drawn to the remarkable personalities within indigenous communities, often misrepresented or overlooked in mainstream media.

The result was a shift in focus, leading to multiple acclaimed exhibitions of her portraits of Pacific Northwest and other Native peoples.

She would go on to launch Project 562, where she would photograph and collect stories from members of every federally recognized Native American tribe in the United States, thereby

creating comprehensive visual curricula and publications that authentically represented contemporary Native America.

Wilbur travelled to 300 sovereign nations throughout 40 states, from the Tlingits in Alaska to the Pima in Arizona, the Pomos in California to the Wampanoags on Cape Cod. Through her lens, she captured the diversity, vibrancy and authenticity of the tribes.

SSC’s NASNTI grant program is 100% federally funded in the amount of $450,000 annually. In addition to hosting cultural experiences on campus, the grant also provides support for students with disabilities by training faculty and staff in best practices, implementing assistive devices and technology and redesigning foundational courses to ensure they best support online students with disabilities.

For more information or questions, contact SSC NASNTI Director Kay Wallace at 405-382-9646 or k.wallace@sscok.edu.