The RED Center created by University President Dr. Linda Sue Warner was designed and developed for the purpose of promoting and building capacity in the area of indigenous research.  It is the culmination of efforts generated by former Presidents Gerald E. Gipp, Robert Martin, and Karen Gayton Swisher, transitioning Haskell from a junior college to a baccalaureate degree offering institution.

The Center will serve to enhance the role the indigenous researcher plays in self-determination.  By becoming the centerpiece for research, a repository for indigenous research by and about indigenous people, and the clearinghouse for contemporary thinking about native ways of knowing, the Center will disseminate research results widely.  Academic foci include education, business, environmental studies, and health.

Capacity to engage in research opportunities is enhanced through the efforts of RED Center Advisory Board members who possess expertise in their specific area of study.  Advisors include professors from Carnegie Research 1 institutions, the general academy, Federal Agencies, Corporations, and Indigenous Communities.  Their role is to provide and create new knowledge and understanding of current and best research practices, contribute to policy planning and development, support indigenous knowledge and native ways of knowing, and offer insight on potential funding sources to aid research capacity building.

The RED Center will be a major source for ethical and equitable research relevant to indigenous people, serving to establish and to promote partnerships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous entities.  By attending to the guiding principle of developing alternative ways of engaging in responsible and valued research to enhance lifelong learning opportunities, the RED Center will support Haskell’s core values of accountability, respect, cooperation, and honesty.