In 2021, President Paxson charged a working group with developing recommendations for how Brown University can acknowledge the land on College Hill as connected to regional tribal nations and Indigenous communities. The working group completed its work in 2022, and Brown established an official land acknowledgment as part of a set of five commitments to deepen understanding and strengthen the relationship between the campus community, the Narragansett Indian Tribe and Indigenous peoples of this region, and the land on which Brown is situated. 

I write today to share the 2026 Status Report on Land Acknowledgment and Five Commitments, which provides an update on the progress we have made toward the commitments over the past four years, as well as areas of continued focus. The report includes an Inventory of Tribal Engagement Initiatives that provides a snapshot of activities led by units and groups across Brown since the five commitments that arose from the Land Acknowledgment Working Group were approved in 2022. The Office of Community Engagement has served as a steward in compiling these efforts for the purposes of the report, but the work to develop programs and initiatives and deepen scholarly study has been a collective effort of the Brown community with its many partners and collaborators, both across and beyond campus. 

As noted in the cover letter of the report, it highlights key progress, including the growth of the Native American and Indigenous Studies Initiative (NAISI), the successful establishment of the critical Native American and Indigenous studies concentration, and the ongoing, sensitive work by the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology related to the repatriation of ancestral remains and cultural belongings. 

These efforts, among many others, represent a shift toward a more sustainable infrastructure for Indigenous scholarship and enduring partnership. The report outlines how significant changes in the regional tribal landscape and at Brown have informed Brown’s approach to fulfilling the intent of the original commitments. 

Importantly, the report introduces an updated, action-oriented framework that maintains accountability to the goals of the original commitments while allowing progress to continue beyond the specific projects identified in 2022. Since then, we have worked to understand the five commitments within Brown’s mission and core institutional values, as well as the evolution of Brown’s approach to community engagement. As explained in depth in the report, the five commitments will be situated and reflected within this broader context going forward. 

This updated framework guides the University’s efforts in seven key areas: 

• Recognition that the University is located within the ancestral homelands of the Narragansett Indian Tribe, including public education and acknowledgment.
• Advancing education and scholarship regarding Indigenous peoples in and around what is now southern New England.
• Facilitating opportunities for collaborative research to benefit stakeholders and partners in advancing understanding of Native and Indigenous history and contemporary issues, including shared resources with Native and Indigenous peoples for this work.
• Supporting educational access initiatives and activities that address issues impacting Native and Indigenous youth.
• Strengthening and expanding community engagement to address community challenges identified by Native and Indigenous communities by creating clearer pathways to engage with the University.
• Continued strategic investment and support for Brown's Native American and Indigenous Studies Initiative (NAISI) to advance knowledge and understanding of the traditions, histories and experiences of Native American and Indigenous peoples.
• Building community at Brown and locally among those dedicated to honoring and celebrating Native and Indigenous peoples, and cultivating and building understanding of Native and Indigenous history and experiences.

The report is an acknowledgment of the work that remains, and we remain focused on a guiding framework for the future, which includes continued investment in Indigenous scholarship, student support, collaborative research and educational access. I invite you to read the report as we continue to work together as a community to build and sustain trusting relationships for generations to come. 

Sincerely, 

MJ Callan
Vice President for Community Engagement and Stark Family Executive Director of the Swearer Center