Vange Hopkins

IIREP M.A. Candidate

B.A. Political Science, University of Rhode Island.

I am a member of the Narragansett Indian Tribe and a MA candidate in Political Science concentrating in Intersectional Indigeneity, Race, Ethnicity, and Politics (IIREP). My academic and community work focuses on Indigenous sovereignty, governance, and educational justice, with particular attention to how institutions can be reshaped through Indigenous epistemologies.

I am actively engaged with the Tribal Education Initiative (TEI), a collaborative effort among Native and Indigenous students, faculty, staff, and allies to establish a sustained institutional presence for Indigenous peoples. This work seeks to hold the university accountable to its origins in Indigenous dispossession and to press for the fulfillment of its responsibilities as a land- and sea-grant university.

My research and advocacy center the lived experience of Narragansett and other Indigenous communities while exploring how Indigenous knowledge systems serve as frameworks of resilience and renewal. By bridging academic inquiry with community engagement, I aim to advance projects that strengthen both scholarship and Indigenous futures.

Published the article “Re-visiting Roger Williams” in Motif RI (October 30, 2024), contributing to the Indigenous Heritage section. – https://motifri.com/re-visiting-roger-williams/