Kent State’s Native American Student Association (NASA) will be holding their annual spring powwow on Saturday, May 2 starting at 10 a.m. and ending at sundown.

It will be held on the Performing Arts Green Space located near the Music and Speech Building.

There will be two “Grand Entries” at noon and 5 p.m., which will consist of various dances related to the Native American theme.

President of NASA Chris Lyons said there will be dancers attending the powwow from Columbus, Akron, Cleveland and even out-of-state.

“This is our chance to do a little culture diversity,” Lyons said. “Powwow is simply a gathering of people. You’ll have that experience of culture that you normally wouldn’t see; the singing, the drum group, having people dancing in different styles.”

He said there would be two Native American bands performing at the event: the Red Bird Singers from Akron and the Fire River Singers from Ravenna.

NASA will be providing ethnic foods such as fried bread, Native American tacos and typical cookout foods.

Lyons said that there would be a food truck vendor available at the event that specializes in Native American cuisine.

“It exposes people to the other side of Native Americans beyond the stereotypes of what you see on television,” Lyons said. “So with that it keeps our culture alive and brings diversity to Kent State. I think it’s important for us to get back to our roots and let other people see what Native Americans really are.”

The event is free and open to the public.

To learn more about NASA, visit https://www.facebook.com/KSU.NASA.

Contact Sabrina Scott at [email protected].