I was once asked by someone unfamiliar with higher education administration the degree to which federal and state policies affect how College of the Redwoods operates. We often talk about how laws and policies related to fiscal compliance, accreditation and eligibility requirements, student financial aid, and student success metrics impact how we meet our mission. However, a little-known regulation, the California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (CalNAGPRA) will affect all California higher education systems in ways that we could not have foreseen a decade ago.
Very few people, inside and outside of the academy, are aware of CalNAGPRA. CalNAGPRA is a law that requires all state-funded agencies and museums, including higher education institutions, that possess, or control collections of California Native American human remains or cultural items to inventory those items, so that they can return them to appropriate California Native American Tribes and lineal descendants. I understand and ally with those who believe that the fact that CalNAGPRA was even necessary speaks to the injustice related to having Native American remains and cultural items in museums and higher education institutions.
After centuries of United States policy meant to separate Native Americans from their diverse cultures and religious practices, in 1990 the federal government passed the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. It was meant to provide a legal process for repatriation of human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects and objects of cultural patrimony belonging to tribes and lineal descendants. However, loopholes, lack of strict guidelines, regulatory gaps, and the lack of support and disengagement of the repatriation process on the part of higher education institutions and museums hindered the return of human remains and sacred objects to Tribal communities. Then in 2001, California passed CalNAGPRA to address some of these gaps, expanding oversight and enforcement as well as making clear that tribal knowledge takes precedence throughout the repatriation process.
After decades of little movement towards the goal, the California Legislature passed AB 389 in 2023 to ensure that the California State University (CSU) fully complies with the requirements of CalNAGPRA. While the primary focus of AB 389 is on the CSU, College of the Redwoods made the decision several years ago to initiate the process of repatriating the sacred objects and objects of cultural patrimony, including baskets and regalia the college acquired from local collector and educator Alice Spinas in 1978, primarily from the Yurok, Karuk, Hupa, and Wiyot peoples. Although the collection has been an important resource for our students and the local community who are interested in the art, history, and Indigenous cultures of this region, we are committed to returning the items, because it is the right and moral thing to do.
The college began the work of repatriation before many other higher education institutions. Our work inventorying these artifacts started in 2016-17, before the enactment of AB 389, when Art Professor Cynthia Hooper worked with Hupa artist Brittany Britton, director of both the Goudi’ni Native American Arts Gallery and the Reese Bullen Gallery at Cal Poly Humboldt to restore, archive, and display baskets and caps on the second floor of the Student Services Building. Prior to that, essential restoration, identification, and cataloging work on the collection was done in partnership with Native basket weavers at different phases in past decades. These expert women not only laid the foundations for repatriation then but continue to help guide CR’s process now.
As you can imagine, the repatriation process is complex, lengthy, and culturally sensitive. We are fortunate to have Professor of Native American Studies Dr. Cintra Agee take the lead on CR’s repatriation process when Professor Hooper retired. In her role, Dr. Agee will coordinate NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA compliance and consultations throughout the process.
Dr. Agee’s background, her research into the repatriation process, and deep understanding of the importance of developing meaningful relationships with our tribal communities will ensure that these sacred items are returned to their rightful people — whether to the tribes, lineal descendants of basket weavers, or, if they choose, to other appropriate destinations.
Despite the complexities of the repatriation process, I am extremely optimistic that College of the Redwoods, working in close partnership with our local Tribes, will respectfully and thoughtfully do everything we can to ensure the return of these sacred objects. While this is a significant step forward, I acknowledge that it does not erase the harms of past colonization. Our partnership with the local tribal communities is fundamental to our mission, and we hope that this small gesture reflects our commitment to ongoing healing and reconciliation.
Dr. Keith Flamer is the president of the College of the Redwoods.
