Graduation ceremonies at Southern Oregon University have long honored Native Americans in the region and in the student body, with an eagle staff presented along with the American flag.
But SOU had never adopted a land acknowledgement statement, words said at public ceremonies to acknowledge the people who once lived upon--and were driven from--what is now the university campus. That has changed through the effort of retiring SOU President Linda Schott.
Campus and tribal officials from the region helped the university create a land acknowledgement statement, which we hear and explore in an on-air discussion on Indigenous Peoples Day.
The chat includes Schott, SOU Native American Student Union member Kayla Dumore, and David Humphrey, Director of the Oregon Center for the Arts at SOU.