Aug. 19, 2024
Dear Colleagues,
Over the past few years there have been significant changes to federal and state laws, as well as 海角社区 policies, to formally acknowledge our shared responsibility to Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities. The 海角社区, including all of us here at 海角社区CI, have been explicit in our commitment to respecting and honoring their cultural heritage, traditional homelands, and fundamental human rights. 海角社区CI has the privilege of living and working on the homeland of the Barbare帽o/Venture帽o Band of Mission Indians, which we continue to recognize and acknowledge.
In November 2023, I sent a message to the campus community regarding nominations to the Systemwide and Campus NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act) Committees, which is one step in our commitment to meeting federal, state, and 海角社区 requirements related to NAGPRA/CalNAGPRA.
This year, 海角社区CI is taking steps to not only comply with these changes, but to enact best practices and serve as a model for other higher education institutions. We ask for your support in making these changes possible, as their success hinges on each and every one of us doing our part.
- In July, we welcomed our inaugural NAGPRA Director, Amber-Marie Madrid, into the Regional Educational Partnerships unit in the Office of the President. In addition to the depth and breadth of her relevant experience, I am grateful for her dedication to our region and deep commitment to place. She will be leading our efforts in compliance, tribal consultation, policy development, and relationship building with our tribal partners and campus community. She is working alongside our Tribal Liaison, Alex Padilla, and Presidential Designee, Dr. Jenn Perry, to make up our campus's NAGPRA Team.
- As part of our compliance with NAGPRA/CalNAGPRA and 海角社区 policy, we will be asking every area on campus to complete a campus assessment to inform the NAGPRA Team about any human remains, cultural items, and/or collections of Native American origin in your area鈥檚 possession, acquired by 海角社区CI or when you were acting as a 海角社区CI representative. This assessment will seek information on such items, whether they are located on campus or at home. Soon you will be receiving an email from Amber-Marie Madrid to begin this process.
This is part of our legal and ethical obligations to the law, and every 海角社区 will be completing these assessments to ensure that we are achieving timely and respectful consultations to repatriate the Native American ancestors and cultural items that have been held in institutions for far too long. I ask for your full support of this process.
- The NAGPRA Team is working to develop resources and training related to NAGPRA/CalNAGPRA and associated policies. As these resources take shape, we encourage you to stay informed by regularly visiting 海角社区CI鈥檚 NAGPRA website. There, you鈥檒l discover essential information, timely updates, and relevant contact details.
Just as Dr. Michelle Dean, 2023-2024 Faculty Fellow, said at last year鈥檚 Convocation, 鈥渃ompliance is not culture.鈥 Our NAGPRA/CalNAGPRA team aims to foster a culture where diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility is deeply embedded into our compliance, and we actively ensure that tribal voices and traditional ways of knowing are not only respected, but also remain integral to our decision making. This includes emphasizing open communication, full transparency, and building community with our tribal partners.
I want to thank you in advance for your support of this work and for your understanding of just how essential this is to our campus mission. For any questions or to learn more, please reach out to nagpra@csuci.edu or to Amber-Marie directly, amber-marie.madrid@csuci.edu.
Sincerely,
Richard Yao, Ph.D.
President