NAGPRA

NAGPRA Committee Charter

UGA NAGPRA Committee Charter V:1.0

PURPOSE

This charter document defines the mission, authority, membership, responsibilities, and operating rules of the University of Georgia (UGA) Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) Compliance Committee (NAGPRA Committee).

MISSION & AUTHORITY

UGA is committed to ensuring that all programs place paramount importance on integrity and safety in meeting the institution’s missions and that we have a culture that reflects this commitment. The NAGPRA Committee is a standing committee within the Office of the Provost. The Committee is supported and managed by the NAGPRA Office in the Office of Research Integrity & Safety.

The NAGPRA Committee is charged with guiding the development and implementation of campus-wide compliance with NAGPRA regulations, establishing, and supporting a culture of care surrounding UGA’s stewardship of Native American ancestors and cultural resources (hereafter NAGPRA eligible cultural resources), and maintaining a respectful, collaborative relationship with Federally Recognized Native American Tribes, Native Hawaiian Organizations, and Lineal Descendants. The NAGPRA Committee will be advisory to the Provost, and work directly with the Office of the Provost, the Associate Vice President for Research Integrity and Safety, and other key stakeholders.

The NAGPRA Committee is charged to make known and enforce policies and processes that ensure NAGPRA compliance on all University campuses, including the inventorying of NAGPRA-eligible cultural resources, consulting with Lineal Descendants, Federally Recognized Native American Tribe(s), and Native Hawaiian Organizations, and repatriation of NAGPRA-eligible cultural resources. The overarching mission of the Committee is to safeguard and ensure the ethical treatment of NAGPRA-eligible cultural resources and the good faith discovery process of University units that may have Control or Possession1 of NAGPRA-eligible cultural resources.

To this end, the NAGPRA Committee serves a critical role in ensuring UGA has a robust culture of care as the foundation for ensuring the institution’s NAGPRA compliance obligations.

APPOINTMENT OF THE COMMITTEE

  1. The NAGPRA Committee members are appointed by the Provost of UGA, or their designee.
  2. The NAGPRA Committee will report to the Provost through the Associate Vice President (AVPR) for Research Integrity and Safety.
  3. Prospective Committee members are identified and recruited by the NAGPRA Committee and endorsed by the Committee Chair and AVPR.

MEMBERSHIP

The Committee will consist of at least five voting members (total number at any time to be determined by the Provost) with broad perspectives on University and NAGPRA-related matters, including, members from a combination of the following units/groups (one individual may represent two or more of the following units/groups where applicable), with required Committee membership as indicated:

1. The Laboratory of Archaeology
2. A Federally Recognized Tribe
3. An Academic School/College other than the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences
4. The Institute of Native American Studies
5. Institutional NAGPRA Program Coordinator (required)
6. The Office of Institutional Diversity (required; non-voting)
7. The Associate Vice President for Research Integrity and Safety (required; non-voting)

Programmatic support to the Committee will be provided by the Institutional NAGPRA Program Coordinator and the AVPR. Legal advisory support to the Committee will be provided by the Office of Legal Affairs.

Third-party consultants may be engaged by the Committee for specific subject matter expertise at the discretion of the Committee and with the approval of the AVPR.

The normal terms of voting membership on the NAGPRA Committee are 3 years, with subsequent terms evaluated on an ad hoc basis. There will be no limit to the number of terms a voting member can serve. The initial terms of service will be staggered from 3-5 years to ensure continuity of membership from year to year.

The NAGPRA Committee will choose a Chair and Vice Chair from among the voting members every 3 years. There are no limits to the number of terms a Chair or Vice Chairs may serve.

The Institutional NAGPRA Program Coordinator will serve as the Committee coordinator and work with the Chair and AVPR to develop meeting agendas and maintain meeting minutes.

A majority of the NAGPRA Committee voting membership will constitute a voting quorum. A voting member of the Committee who cannot attend a meeting may designate a qualified alternate. An alternate will be a voting member of the Committee only for the meeting for which they are designated.

A NAGPRA Committee member may be replaced upon the recommendation of the Chair to the AVPR. The Chair may recommend the replacement of any Committee member who has missed two meetings during one calendar year. The Chair may also recommend the name(s) of qualified candidates for any vacancy.

Any Committee member wishing to resign his/her seat on the Committee is requested to submit the resignation in writing at least 60 days before the resignation is to take effect.

MEETINGS

  1. The Committee will meet monthly or on an alternate frequency determined by the Chair, but in any case, the Committee will meet at least six times annually. Additional meetings may be called by the Chair.
  2. The minutes of each meeting will be provided to all members of the NAGPRA Committee and the AVPR. All agendas and minutes will be available to committee members and the AVPR in a shared NAGPRA Committee OneDrive folder maintained by the NAGPRA Program Coordinator.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

  1. Develop campus procedures to guide in the protection of Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony consistent with laws, regulations, and institutional policy, guidelines, and best practices.
  2. Develop associated communications strategies and informational materials regarding the University’s NAGPRA efforts for employees, units, and other stakeholders.
  3. Advise the UGA NAGPRA Office on other matters as requested.
  4. Advise the Provost on tribal relations and the process for repatriation of remains and objects.
  5. Determine whether any proposed use or access (including research, teaching, display, imaging, and circulation) will be permitted.
  6. Monitor and review the implementation of the inventory and identification processes and repatriation activities required by the Act to ensure a fair and objective consideration and assessment of all available relevant information and evidence.

TRIBAL LIAISON SUBCOMMITTEE

The NAGPRA Tribal Liaison Subcommittee (TLS) is a standing subcommittee of the NAGPRA Committee. The subcommittee’s role is ambassadorial and focused on sustaining respectful collaborations with Lineal Descendants, Federally Recognized Native American Tribe(s), and Native Hawaiian Organizations in fulfilling UGA’s obligations in meeting the letter and spirit of NAGPRA.

The TLS membership is appointed by the NAGPRA Committee chair and shall consist of at least two Committee members including one from the Laboratory of Archaeology.

The TLS will be responsible for all communications with Lineal Descendants, Federally Recognized Native American Tribe(s), and Native Hawaiian Organizations regarding the UGA NAGPRA program.

The TLS’s activities consist of consultation on UGA-controlled collections. Consultation includes conveying NAGPRA information to assist in understanding the timeline of excavations, accessioning of collections, and the development of inventories and summaries and cultural affiliation of NAGPRA-eligible cultural resources. Additionally, the subcommittee will communicate traditional care practices while in the care of UGA, progress on preparing NAGPRA- eligible cultural resources for repatriation, and their eventual repatriation.

The TLS will meet on an as-needed basis and reports of the subcommittee’s activities will be made at every scheduled NAGPRA Committee meeting.

CHARTER REVIEW & REVISION

The NAGPRA Committee Charter is to be reviewed by the Committee or an ad hoc subcommittee at least once every three years but may be revised at any time to address required administrative or policy changes. The University’s Office of Legal Affairs will review all changes to the policies and procedures prior to final approval. Approval of any Committee-initiated changes to the Charter requires affirmation by the Provost.

END NOTE

1 Possession or Control is defined as having a sufficient interest in an object or item to independently direct, manage, oversee, or restrict the use of the object or item. A museum or Federal agency may have possession or control regardless of the physical location of the object or item. In general, custody through a loan, lease, license, bailment, or other similar arrangement is not a sufficient interest to constitute possession or control, which resides with the loaning, leasing, licensing, bailing, or otherwise transferring museum or Federal agency. To learn more about NAGPRA terminology, visit the NAGPRA glossary.