UNC Pembroke News

Actors perform an action scene during a 1981 production of Strike at the Wind!, the acclaimed outdoor drama chronicling the life of Lumbee folk hero Henry Berry Lowrie and the Lowrie War.

Strike at the Wind! Returns for Landmark 50th Anniversary Season

Fifty years after audiences first gathered beneath the summer sky to watch Henry Berry Lowrie's story unfold, Strike at the Wind! returns this summer for a landmark anniversary season that celebrates the enduring legacy of the Lumbee people, the tribe's recent federal recognition and UNC Pembroke's decades-long role in preserving one of North Carolina's most significant works of Indigenous theater.

Lumbee Ambassadors

UNCP to host several events to celebrate 57th annual Lumbee Homecoming

UNC Pembroke invites the public to celebrate the 57th annual Lumbee Homecoming, June 26-July 4, in Pembroke, NC.

Panelists participate in a Native American Coalition for Economic Prosperity (NACEP) Government-to-Government Roundtable at UNC Pembroke, where a speaker addresses attendees during a discussion on federal partnerships, access to capital, infrastructure and economic development for tribal nations.

National Tribal Leaders Convene at UNC Pembroke

At a time of new opportunity for tribal nations, leaders representing more than 20 Native communities from across the country gathered at UNC Pembroke on Tuesday to discuss the challenges and opportunities shaping their future.

UNCP alumna Rakayah Jacobs and John Oxendine lead the grand entry at the 2025 BraveNation Powwow and Gathering in the Jones Athletic Center.

Southeast Native Studies Conference, BraveNation Powwow Highlight Indigenous Showcase

The week of March 16-21, 2026, UNC Pembroke’s campus will be filled with events and activities showcasing the history, culture, accomplishments and contributions of American Indian people.

Tonya Holy Elk
February 26 Mark Locklear

Tonya Holy Elk Named 2026 Lloyd Oxendine Artist in Residence

The Museum of the Southeast American Indian (MSAI) at UNC Pembroke has named Tonya Holy Elk, ’18, as the 2026 Lloyd Oxendine Artist in Residence.

Lydia Mansfield
January 05 Mark Locklear

UNCP Senior Elected to National Indian Education Association Board of Directors

When Lydia Mansfield heard her name announced at the National Indian Education Association’s (NIEA) annual conference in Spokane, Washington, she wasn’t thinking about the national platform she had just earned —or even about the historic responsibility now in her hands.

Members of Alpha Pi Omega perform a traditional swan dance during an Indigenous Peoples' Day event
October 14 Mark Locklear

UNCP Honors Its Roots, Celebrates Resilience During Indigenous Peoples’ Day Event

The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, the only four-year university founded by American Indians for American Indians, celebrated Indigenous Peoples’ Day on Monday with a day filled with music, art and cultural traditions honoring Native heritage and resilience.

Nancy Chavis
October 09 Chad Locklear

UNCP Curator Honored with National Award for Advancing American Art

UNC Pembroke’s Museum of the Southeast American Indian director and curator Nancy Strickland Chavis has been awarded the 2025 William Collins Smith Auburn Award for Advancing American Art by the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University.

Commander John B. Herrington
September 15 Mark Locklear

Native American Astronaut John Herrington to Speak at UNC Pembroke

The Museum of the Southeast American Indian at UNC Pembroke will host Commander John B. Herrington, a trailblazing astronaut and member of the Chickasaw Nation, for a special public presentation.

Aerial view of Old Main
September 11 Mark Locklear

UNCP Secures $1.3 Million for Historic Old Main Façade Restoration

The University of North Carolina at Pembroke has been awarded $750,000 through a History of Equal Rights grant from the Historic Preservation Fund administered by the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, to restore the iconic façade of Old Main, the most recognizable building on campus and a treasured landmark in the Lumbee community.