UM outlines decade-long NAGPRA repatriation effort, asks for consultation-centered approach

University of Montana researchers and collections staff told the committee that repatriation under recent NAGPRA rule changes requires an extensive, consultation-first effort and clarified how long the work will take.

Kelly Dixon, a professor at the University of Montana, introduced the presentation and outlined three handouts the university provided. She said the university's cultural and archaeological collections grew over more than a century after the school's founding in 1893 and that "by the time we got to the mid-twentieth century, we were there at about 1,000,000" items in collections that now must be reviewed for repatriation eligibility.

Courtney Littleax, the university's NAGPRA repatriation coordinator and collections manager, walked the committee through the steps the university is taking: an inventory sweep in consultation with Tribal Historic Preservation Officers (THPOs), a multi-phase box-by-box review and a recognition that many older collections lack provenance and may be chemically treated. "We have to go back through with consultation, alongside the tribes," she said, and noted that the new NAGPRA regulations require free, prior and informed consent for certain uses.

Littleax said the university is trying to balance transparency with tribal sovereignty and legal limits on disclosure: the metrics in the handout are approximate and will change as tribes and the university confirm eligibility. She described recent repatriation work with the Northern Cheyenne that included a stewardship agreement and a community celebration—"we also had a celebratory gourd dance, which was monumental"—and emphasized the value of long-term consultation relationships the university has built over the past decade.

Deputy Commissioner Joe Thiele (OCHE) said the university's work could inform other institutions in the Montana University System and help standardize consultation and repatriation processes statewide. Committee members and tribal THPOs echoed concerns about funding and THPO workload; one senator noted the program appears to be ‘‘an unfunded mandate''and urged more resources.

Ending: The committee requested ongoing updates; staff and OCHE said they will continue coordinating across MUS campuses and that the Heritage Collections Board and upcoming regional training (May 12'14) will expand capacity and training opportunities.