A \u201csage\u201d is a mature person who is wise through reflection and experience. It also happens to be the name of the founding president of NAISA, the Native American and Indigenous Students Association, and newly named Truman Scholar and Udall Scholar \u2014Sage Phillips.<\/p>\n
Rising senior Phillips hails from Old Town, Maine, and is a member of the Penobscot Nation. She almost didn\u2019t come to UConn. The political science and human rights major wanted to immerse herself in a robust Native American college community. Unsure if UConn\u2019s offerings would be enough for her, she told her parents she wanted to go elsewhere. \u201cWhy don\u2019t you take this as an opportunity to build a program?\u201d her father suggested.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not going to be easy,\u201d Phillips recalls thinking. \u201cBut if I can find a few other people, I think we can build something pretty special.\u201d That is what she did. Her freshman year she joined UConn\u2019s Native American Cultural Programs (NACP) and got a job in the Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, where she helped plan Indigenous Peoples Week and Native American Month.<\/p>\n
That wasn\u2019t enough. \u201cWe were struggling with student involvement. I thought there must be more Indigenous-identifying students, so I created NAISA,\u201d she says. A place where members can reclaim their cultural identities, NAISA also aims to educate the broader UConn community on native history, cultural diversity, and current events. \u201cIt\u2019s going to show prospective students that when they get here, there\u2019ll be a place they can call home. This is the community I so desperately sought to welcome me,\u201d says Phillips, who also mentors local Native youth, represents the NACP on the President\u2019s Council on Race and Diversity, sits on Student Affairs\u2019 Student Leadership Council, and has an ex officio seat in the USG Senate.<\/p>\n