San Diego State University Begins Collaboration with National Indian Gaming Commission
The Sycuan Institute on Tribal Gaming at SDSU has partnered with the National Indian Gaming Commission to support students and the Commission.
The announcement marks the first time the NIGC has partnered with an academic institution. Notably, The Sycuan Institute on Tribal Gaming at SDSU offers the nation’s only four-year degree program in tribal casino operations management. “This agreement represents two of the three pillars of the Sycuan Institute’s vision: to produce academic research related to tribal government gaming and to engage in public policy work related to tribal casino operations and regulation,” said Katherine Spilde, Endowed Chair of the Sycuan Institute. “Of course, the findings and publications from this collaboration will also contribute to the Institute’s third pillar: our degree in tribal casino operations management.”
The NIGC is the federal regulatory body that works with tribal governments across the nation to ensure compliance with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). In the official agreement with SDSU, the NIGC will coordinate with the Sycuan Institute in the collection and development of non-confidential data and analysis.
“The development and analysis of data will ultimately help support the health and stability of the tribal gaming industry in a data-driven manner,” said NIGC Chairman Jonodev Chaudhuri. “This MOU is a great starting point, and we are excited to work with such a well-regarded academic and non-profit institution on both assessing the impacts of the last 30 years under IGRA, as well as analyzing current Indian gaming-related data so that we may continue to perform our mission at NIGC as efficiently and effectively as possible.”
“It is a really big honor to work with the NIGC because they need to work with institutions and organizations with an understanding of the unique attributions of the tribal government gaming industry,” said Spilde. “It is exciting that SDSU was selected because it recognizes the investment by the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation to create the only degree program that focuses on tribal gaming.”
“I am happy the Commission and Sycuan Institute have entered into this collaboration. I firmly believe that data is an important part of telling the story of tribal gaming and informing our regulatory policy,” said NIGC Vice-Chair Kathryn Isom-Clause. “I look forward to working with the Sycuan Institute under the MOU, which provides for a data-driven approach that will help the NIGC better serve Indian Country.”
