A Native American pow wow is common each August near Tama but Thursday evening it came to Marshalltown.

According to Valerie Ruiz, Academic Advising Specialist at Marshalltown Community College, the first ever community pow wow was held at MCC to bring awareness to the local Native American Inter-Tribal Student Alliance or NAISA for short.

“NAISA’s purpose is to establish a united and collective forefront that empowers MCCs Native American students to raise awareness of indigenous cultures and strengthens a culture of college access and success,” Ruiz said.

“Native American student enrollment at MCC increased by 50 percent in 2019 from the year before,” she said.

Included in the evening was registration and a fry bread bar beginning at 5:30 with the Robert Morgan Post 701 conducting the grand entry at 6 p.m. in the Babe Harder gymnasium. Special events took place throughout the evening including a drawing for a $500 scholarship for a first time MCC student who was present at the free event. Vendor arts and crafts were also available to the public during the three-hour event.