Who do I contact about what info I need to prove i am Cherokee Indian?

Question: Who do I contact about what info I need to prove i am Cherokee Indian!?

also, what educational benefits are available!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

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The place to start is the Cherokee Heritage Documentation Center!. But first, let’s clear up some confusing information!. There are three key Cherokee tribes!. The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians in North Carolina are the largest!. The Oklahoma tribe only requires that you have an ancestor on the Dawes rolls (a census from the early 1900’s) but there is NO blood percentage required!. The Eastern band requires an ancestor on the Baker roll of 1924 and additionally one sixteenth Eastern Cherokee blood!. There is another federally recognized group known as the United Keetoowah Band of the Cherokee Indians!. They use the same Dawes roll requirements as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, but also require one fourth “Keetoowah Cherokee Blood”!.

In addition there are state recognized tribes such as the Georgia Tribe of the Eastern Cherokee!. This particular tribe requires applicants to have an ancestor on “one of the many US Government Cherokee Indian Rolls”!. Even if you are not able to become a member of a Cherokee tribe doesn’t mean you are not Cherokee!. It simply means your ancestors may have avoided being included on those government rolls!. In that case you can complete a “Declaration of Cherokee Heritage” at the Documentation Center and receive a Cherokee Documentation Number (CDN) that references your claim!.

HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:

Begin by charting your family tree online!. There are several sites that let you have a free trial for 14 days or longer!. Even if you only know a very little about your family tree, these programs will link together what you know with information from census data, cemeteries, military records and more to help you fill in your family history very fast!. You'll learn a lot about your relatives, and sometimes discover photos of relatives or meet others tracing the same family roots!. The information is displayed in a way that will allow you to choose whether you want to include it in your own tree or ignore it!.

You can also get an incredible amount of information from the Cherokee Heritage Documentation Center!. The link is below!. By registering with the Documentation Center you will get help in finding your ancestors that you could not get otherwise!.

Once you have the information collected on the form provided, you can send it to the Cherokee Tribe that is correct for your family linage!. (This information is provided on the site also!.) When the tribe completes your enrollment, you will receive two cards!. One is your tribal membership card, the other is a Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood!. This will give you the "official" amount of Cherokee blood you have!.

Filling in the gaps this way will save you a lot of time, frustration and money!. It will also help you get enrolled in a tribe if you meet the requirements!. Even if you are not eligible for tribal enrollment you will have the information you need to celebrate your birthright and be proud of your heritage!.

EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS:

Free college and scholarships!. (Yes, there IS free college!. It doesn't mean every college is free but there are also scholarships available)

Vocational training scholarship programs, supportive services and/or assistance to pay for tuition fees, and books while attending!.

Tuition assistance grants for a variety of occupational or technical trades, Associate of Applied Arts, or Applied Science degrees!. Includes on the job training in occupational trades!.

Cherokee Tribal Member
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You must be 1/4 Cherokee in order to join the Cherokee nation!. You have to prove your lineage to the full blood grandparent and then their lineage to someone on the Dawes Roll!. Even if you choose not to enroll in the Nation, you are eligible for Cherokee nation scholarships if you can prove that your full blood grandparent was a nation member!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

You have to get your CIB Card first!.

After you get your CIB card, which proves that you are really native american, you need to mail it to the tribe you are applying to!.

Here is a site that basically tells you everything you need for tribal membership

http://www!.ncai!.org/fileadmin/08-09Triba!.!.!.

Bureau of Indian Affairs!.
http://www!.doi!.gov/bia/

Educational benefits are need based, and will not be given to people who make over 30000 a year!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

There are 561 federally recognized tribal governments in the United States!. These tribes possess the right to form their own government, to enforce laws (both civil and criminal), to tax, to establish requirements for membership, to license and regulate activities, to zone and to exclude persons from tribal territories!. Limitations on tribal powers of self-government include the same limitations applicable to states; for example, neither tribes nor states have the power to make war, engage in foreign relations, or coin money (this includes paper currency)!.[50]

Many Native Americans and advocates of Native American rights point out that the US Federal government's claim to recognize the "sovereignty" of Native American peoples falls short, given that the US still wishes to govern Native American peoples and treat them as subject to US law!. True respect for Native American sovereignty, according to such advocates, would require the United States federal government to deal with Native American peoples in the same manner as any other sovereign nation, handling matters related to relations with Native Americans through the Secretary of State, rather than the Bureau of Indian Affairs!. The Bureau of Indian Affairs reports on its website that its "responsibility is the administration and management of 55,700,000 acres (225,000 km2) of land held in trust by the United States for American Indians, Indian tribes, and Alaska Natives!."[51] Many Native Americans and advocates of Native American rights believe that it is condescending for such lands to be considered "held in trust" and regulated in any fashion by a foreign power, whether the US Federal Government, Canada, or any other non-Native American authority!.

According to 2003 United States Census Bureau estimates, a little over one third of the 2,786,652 Native Americans in the United States live in three states: California at 413,382, Arizona at 294,137 and Oklahoma at 279,559!.[52]

As of 2000, the largest tribes in the U!.S!. by population were Navajo, Cherokee, Choctaw, Sioux, Chippewa, Apache, Blackfeet, Iroquois, and Pueblo!. In 2000, eight of ten Americans with Native American ancestry were of mixed blood!. It is estimated that by 2100 that figure will rise to nine out of ten!.[53] In addition, there are a number of tribes that are recognized by individual states, but not by the federal government!. The rights and benefits associated with state recognition vary from state to state!.

Some tribal nations have been unable to establish their heritage and obtain federal recognition!. The Muwekma Ohlone of the San Francisco bay area are pursuing litigation in the federal court system to establish recognition!.[54] Many of the smaller eastern tribes have been trying to gain official recognition of their tribal status!. The recognition confers some benefits, including the right to label arts and crafts as Native American and permission to apply for grants that are specifically reserved for Native Americans!. But gaining recognition as a tribe is extremely difficult; to be established as a tribal group, members have to submit extensive genealogical proof of tribal descent!.

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You need to be a certain percentage and enrolled in a tribe to get benefits!. In order to get enrolled in a tribe, you need to prove you have an ancestor on the Dawes Rolls!.Www@QuestionHome@Com