In June, OCU Law hosted the annual Sovereignty Symposium at the Skirvin Hilton Hotel in downtown 野狼社区. With more than 650 attendees, it was a record-breaking event.
Osage Nation Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear delivered the symposium鈥檚 keynote address and received the symposium鈥檚 highest award: Honored One. During the opening ceremony, attendees also enjoyed appearances by the Kiowa Black Leggings, Southern Nation and the Osage Tribal Singers, including the Oscar-nominated Scott George. All of Oklahoma鈥檚 39 tribes were represented in the opening ceremony flag processional.
In its 36th year, the Sovereignty Symposium once again brought together tribal leaders, state and federal leaders, policymakers, lawyers, scholars, artists and hundreds of people active in American Indian law and tribal sovereignty issues. Panels covered topics of data sovereignty, government to government relations, health care, gaming and more, with experts from the respective fields spurring important conversations.
The 2024 Symposium also saw the exciting announcement from OCU and OCU Law that the School of Law will be the home of the new Tribal Sovereignty Institute. Supported by a dozen tribal leaders, Dean David Holt and President Kenneth Evans made the announcement at a press conference on the first day of the symposium. The launch of the institute complements OCU Law鈥檚 existing work in American Indian law, including the American Indian Wills Clinic and the hosting of the Sovereignty Symposium.
When Osage tribal member Holt became dean of OCU Law in 2023, he recognized it was a perfect moment to further elevate American Indian law as an area of excellence for the school, which would additionally fill a critical need for legal expertise and scholarship. The need is real, and as a private school in the state鈥檚 capital, OCU Law is perfectly positioned, both because of its geography and its status as a private institution.
Working with President Evans and their teams at OCU Law and OCU鈥檚 main campus, a proposal was developed to create the OCU Tribal Sovereignty Institute, to be housed at OCU Law. Its primary goals are to educate future lawyers, train current lawyers to practice in tribal legal systems, produce scholarship accessible to policymakers and the public and advocate publicly for heightened awareness of tribal sovereignty.
鈥淧olicymakers need more independent, credible information on this topic,鈥� said Holt. 鈥淎ll government entities, law firms and tribes need attorneys who are knowledgeable in these areas. Considering our existing work and our location, we think that OCU and OCU Law are ideal institutions to meet this need. This institute will further establish our law school, our university and our city as leaders at the forefront of these sovereignty conversations.鈥�
Following the announcement at the Sovereignty Symposium, OCU Law is currently in the process of hiring the executive director/professor. Faculty hiring processes commonly last most of an academic year, and it is envisioned to have the person identified in time for the 2025 Sovereignty Symposium. If you know someone who would like to know more about this opportunity, the chair of the hiring committee for this role is Associate Dean Lee Peoples, and he can be contacted at [email protected].
Future phases of the institute beyond the initial hire are envisioned but will be dependent on resources. OCU Law and OCU leadership continues to visit with potential partners.
