Northeastern State University ushered in its second century with a ceremony commemorating Founders Day at the historic institutions Centennial Plaza on Friday, March 6.

Founders Day honored the day the Oklahoma legislature purchased the Cherokee Nation Female Seminary and the surrounding land from the Cherokee Nation in 1909.

The ceremony also included the dedication of Centennial Plaza, a new centralized meeting area in front of Seminary Hall that pays tribute to the Cherokees, who had the foresight to lay the groundwork for higher education Oklahoma. A bronze statue of Sequoyah, the 19th century diplomat and creator of the Cherokee syllabary, designed by NSU alumnus Daniel HorseChief, stands at the heart of the plaza.

Northeastern State University fields NCAA teams in basketball, baseball, football, golf, soccer, softball, tennis. Annually, approximately 50 percent of NSU's athletes graduate on time or earn a 3.20 grade-point average. These figures, coupled with exemplary results in 10 varsity sports, is why Northeastern State University is considered one of the premier NCAA Division II institutions in the nation.

The 37th Annual Symposium on the American Indian is a celebration of 100 years of higher education at NSU. Following a century of Cherokee Nation education, NSU was founded on the established site of the pre-statehood Cherokee National Female Seminary and in 2009 continues to serve a significant Native student population.

We welcome our alumni home to deliver keynote addresses and presentations that reflect the scholarship of our institution and inform us from diverse perspectives and experiences.