Founded as a community-based organization in 1969, the American Indian Community House (AICH) aims to promote the well-being of Native Americans in an urban setting and bring visibility to Native American culture. ¹ The members of AICH include Native Americans from more than 70 different tribes. ²

Programs

American Indian Community House hosts and participates in Native American cultural events and various exhibits across New York City. In 2018, AICH worked closely with the Language Conservancy and New York University’s Center for Latin American and Caribbean studies to provide a Lakota Language Weekend. ³ AICH has also hosted “maker sessions,” by inviting New Yorkers to attend sessions on how to produce native art. ⁴

In 2020, the city of New York provided a $50,000 grant to AICH for the purpose of community-based U.S. Census outreach. AICH implemented an outreach element in conjunction with various cultural events to encourage Native American attendees to complete the U.S. Census. ⁵

With earlier funding from the Indian Health Service (IHS), AICH offered compensation for medical, dental, or optical expenses to Native Americans in New York City who are enrolled in a federally recognized tribe. IHS funding also provided mental health services in the form of virtual tele-behavioral health sessions. ⁶

Finance

In 2017, Indian Health Service gave American Indian Community House three weeks’ notice that its annual funding of approximately $1 million would not be renewed. Additionally, IHS denied AICH’s request for six months of intermediary funding, leaving the organization without a primary source of revenue. ⁷

The organization’s tax returns for 2017 reported no revenue, yet expenses exceeded $129,000, leaving a substantial fund balance deficit of more than $349,000. ⁸ The organization reported a diminishing amount of revenue in earlier tax returns, reporting slightly more than $1.6 million in 2014, just over $1 million in 2015, and about $724,000 in 2016. ⁹

Leadership

After AICH’s loss of funding from Indian Health Service in 2017, AICH officials acknowledged that it “had some troublesome times in the past concerning the program’s finances and mistakes by management,” and that the organization made changes to the management team and board members accordingly. ¹⁰

Rich Chavolla currently serves as the board chair and is a senior consultant at RC Consulting and Associates. Chavolla previously served as the director of the Center for Multicultural Education and Programs at New York University. ¹¹ During President Donald Trump’s administration, Chavolla criticized the administration in response to the elimination of IHS funding by saying, “It’s no secret that there’s a federal movement under this President and Congress to defund Native initiatives that support our people, and ignore Native sovereignty. We may just be a victim of this latest trend against Native services and communities.” ¹²

Melissa Oakes serves as AICH’s executive director. She is the founder of Mohawk Coterie, a fashion and accessories vendor. ¹³

1. “About The American Indian Community House.” American Indian Community House, January 30, 2020. https://aich.org/about/.
2. “About The American Indian Community House.” American Indian Community House, January 30, 2020. https://aich.org/about/.
3. O’Connell-Domenech, Alejandra. “Native American Nonprofit Aims To Boost Community Health By Teaching Lakota Language.” American Indian Community House. AICH, March 27, 2018. https://aich.org/2018/03/27/native-american-nonprofit-aims-boost-community-health-teaching-lakota-language/.
4. Khurshid, Samar. “’They’re Conditioned to Just Ignore or Erase Us’: Native Americans in New York Fear Another Census Undercount.” Gotham Gazette, March 9, 2020. https://www.gothamgazette.com/state/9189-goverment-conditioned-ignore-or-erase-us-native-americans-in-new-york-2020-census-undercount.
5. Khurshid, Samar. “’They’re Conditioned to Just Ignore or Erase Us’: Native Americans in New York Fear Another Census Undercount.” Gotham Gazette, March 9, 2020. https://www.gothamgazette.com/state/9189-goverment-conditioned-ignore-or-erase-us-native-americans-in-new-york-2020-census-undercount.
6. Enos, Tony. “The American Indian Community House, Still A Home Away From Home.” American Indian Community House. AICH, September 7, 2017. https://aich.org/2017/08/08/the-american-indian-community-house-still-a-home-away-from-home/.
7. Enos, Tony. “The American Indian Community House, Still A Home Away From Home.” American Indian Community House. AICH, September 7, 2017. https://aich.org/2017/08/08/the-american-indian-community-house-still-a-home-away-from-home/.
8. American Indian Community House, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-EZ), 2017
9. American Indian Community House, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2015
10. Enos, Tony. “The American Indian Community House, Still A Home Away From Home.” American Indian Community House. AICH, September 7, 2017. https://aich.org/2017/08/08/the-american-indian-community-house-still-a-home-away-from-home/.
11. “Rick Chavolla.” LinkedIn. Accessed December 2, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-chavolla-65a7a0154.
12. Enos, Tony. “The American Indian Community House, Still A Home Away From Home.” American Indian Community House. AICH, September 7, 2017. https://aich.org/2017/08/08/the-american-indian-community-house-still-a-home-away-from-home/.
13. “About Iakowi:He’ne’.” Mohawk Coterie. Accessed December 2, 2020. https://mohawkcoterie.com/pages/about-us.