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- The Utah Board of Higher Education adopted new land acknowledgment guidelines for colleges.
- Institutions must have agreements with tribes or engage in tribal education or research.
- The policy encourages partnerships with tribes, focusing on education access and success.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Board of Higher Education last week adopted new guidelines for colleges and universities when it comes to making Indigenous land acknowledgment statements.
The new policy stipulates which institutions can make land acknowledgment statements.
"Colleges and universities must have an agreement with or a grant related to one of Utah's Native American tribes that supports tribal members' access to higher education; be engaged in education, research or service for one or more tribes; or have a land-grant mission," said a release from the University of Utah.
Further guidelines from the policy include:
- The times and places a land acknowledgment should be shared
- The parts of an approved statement (along with an approved template)
Now, under Utah System of Higher Education policy, land acknowledgments may be read at meetings with the tribes, at events where members of a tribe are speaking or being honored, at research or cultural events or during discussions of land stewardship or management.
Additionally, land acknowledgments may be posted on an institution's website.
The new policy "encourages each (Utah System of Higher Education) institution to strengthen its relationships, and establish meaningful partnerships with tribes. Such partnerships should focus on ensuring the tribes' members' access to higher education; improving retention and certificate and degree completion rates; addressing higher education affordability and creating pathways for success from K-12 to higher education," it reads.
The policy also requires any institution under the system's umbrella that has an agreement with a tribe to report annually to the board by May 1 about that agreement and the steps the college or university is taking to meet its commitments to the respective tribe.
The U., which has had a formal partnership with the Ute Indian Tribe for over 50 years and adopted its land acknowledgment statement in 2020, complies with the new policy and no changes are needed to its current land acknowledgment statement, according to a release from the university.
Utah State University — the Beehive State's designated land-grant university — established its land acknowledgment statement in 2022.
Southern Utah University was the latest institution to join the U. and Utah State University, releasing a land acknowledgment statement of its own in 2024.
Further, the policy doesn't extend to student clubs, unless the club is directly sponsored by the university or college. As for faculty members, they will still be free to express personal views, including land acknowledgments, as long as those statements aren't made on behalf of the university.
