This Ancient Land

How TCU Honors Native American and Indigenous Peoples

By Texas Christian University

October 31^st, 2023

Long before TCU’s Fort Worth campus took shape in 1911, the land was home to the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes — a fact that the university strives to honor every day. This intertwined history is the focus of TCU’s Native American and Indigenous Peoples Day Symposium, presented annually in early October. First hosted in 2016, the symposium is part of a TCU initiative established for the campus community to learn directly from — rather than about — Native communities.

As one of TCU’s 150th marquee events, this year’s symposium explored the past, present and future of the university’s connection to Native Americans and Indigenous peoples.

A First-Hand Look

Throughout the day, Carl Kurtz ’14, a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, invited classes to a tipi in the Campus Commons for an interactive learning experience. Kurtz taught students, faculty and staff about the history of the Nishnabe, which means “the People of the Place of the Fire” in the Potawatomi language, and shared his experiences as a Native former TCU student and employee.

Carl Kurtz ’14 speaks to students about his lived experience as a Native American and Horned Frog.

A sign details facts about the tipi, which would have been considered a middle class home prior to the 1900s.

Beadwork Techniques

Members of the campus community also participated in a beading class taught by Bethany Kurtz ’14 that introduced common Native regalia design methods, such as brickwork and peyote stitch, and created a purple-and-white Frog Fountain keychain.

Native American Land Acknowledgment

Created in November 2020, TCU’s Native American Land Acknowledgment represents shared experiences between the university and Native American peoples. The acknowledgement is broadly used in print, online and verbally at all major university events, such as commencement, as an invitation for reflection and action.

As a university, we acknowledge the many benefits we have of being in this place. It is a space we share with all living beings, human and non-human. It is an ancient space where others have lived before us. The monument created jointly by TCU and the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes reminds us of our benefits, responsibilities, and relationships. We pause to reflect on its words.

This ancient land, for all our relations.

We respectfully acknowledge all Native American peoples who have lived on this land since time immemorial. TCU especially acknowledges and pays respect to the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, upon whose historical homeland our university is located.

Special Guests

Prior to the symposium’s keynote event — a panel discussion between leaders from TCU and Native communities — TCU President Daniel W. Pullin hosted a reception for panelists and other dignitaries, including Wichita and Affiliated Tribes President Terri Parton.

Notably, the reception was the largest gathering of Native and Indigenous leaders on campus in TCU’s 150-year history, and President Parton’s visit marked only the second time that a Native American head of state has come to campus.

TCU Chief Inclusion Officer Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado with Tabitha Tan ’99, Navajo Nation.

TCU President Daniel W. Pullin (center) with Wichita and Affiliated Tribes President Terri Parton and Scott Langston, Ph.D., interim Native American Nations and Communities liaison.

TCU students Clayton Chiariello (left) and Haylee Chiariello with Abel Gomez, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Religion.

Wichita and Affiliated Tribes President Terri Parton (center) with Diana Parton, Caddo Nation, and Derek Ross, Wichita and Affiliated Tribes.

TCU President Daniel W. Pullin with Bob Whistler, Citizen Potawatomi Nation.

During the keynote, panelists discussed relationships between Native communities and higher education institutions, including opportunities for TCU to help strengthen ties for a better future.

Open to the campus community, the discussion was moderated by Wendi Sierra, Ph.D., citizen of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin and associate professor of game studies in the John V. Roach Honors College. Panelists included several members of TCU’s Native American Advisory Circle, which helps guide TCU on positive ways to make Native Americans feel respected and part of the campus community.

Terri Parton, Wichita and Affiliated Tribes president
Chebon Kernell, citizen of Seminole Nation of Oklahoma; Muscogee/Creek ceremonial grounds leader; executive director, Native American Comprehensive Plan, United Methodist Church; member, TCU’s Native American Advisory Circle
Annette Anderson, Chickasaw and Cherokee; advisory council member, Indigenous Institute of the Americas; licensed clinical social worker; member, TCU’s Native American Advisory Circle
Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado, Ph.D., TCU chief inclusion officer and senior advisor to the chancellor

Chebon Kernell (left) is the executive director of the Native American Comprehensive Plan for the United Methodist Church and a member of TCU’s Native American Advisory Circle. TCU faculty member Wendi Sierra (right) moderated the keynote panel.

Annette Anderson, Chickasaw and Cherokee, is a licensed clinical social worker and serves as a member of TCU’s Native American Advisory Circle.

From left to right: Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado, Annette Anderson, Terri Parton, Chebon Kernell and Wendi Sierra.

“We better understand how to build toward a future where Native and Indigenous communities are essential partners in creating an inclusive, respectful and informed university.”

A Campus Landmark

During the symposium, President Parton and Scott Langston, TCU’s interim Native American Nations and Communities liaison, paid a special visit to the Native American Monument, erected in 2018 in partnership with the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes under President Parton’s leadership.

“Throughout the symposium, TCU’s leaders, faculty, staff and students had conversations with and listened to Native American and Indigenous leaders about the relationships between these communities,” said Langston. “Never in its 150-year history has TCU done this on such a large scale.”

Scott Langston, interim Native American Nations and Communities liaison, and Terri Parton, Wichita and Affiliated Tribes president, visit TCU’s Native American Monument. The monument’s plaque includes part of TCU’s land acknowledgment statement.

Building Bridges

Since 2015, TCU’s Native American and Indigenous Peoples Initiative has developed relationships with local and national Native leaders to work toward a more inclusive future through events, curricula and scholarship opportunities that recognize the impact of Native communities on and off campus.