Opinion | Lisa Ganuelas, CTUIR Board of Trustees

In 2005, the 59th Regular Session of the Washington State Legislature, Substitute House Bill (SHB) 1495 became law. SHB 1495 was an act relating to teaching Washington’s tribal history, culture and government in the common schools.

As I thought about writing this op-ed, I had to personalize it. What was I taught in the public school system about tribal history, culture and government? What were you taught, whatever your age, in the public school system about the same?

I was raised in Wapato, Washington, and attended Wapato Schools for my K-12 education. Wapato is an incorporated city within the boundaries of the Yakama Nation, an approximately 1.2-million-acre reservation.

Thinking back, I remember Indian history being almost a chapter in our history books. I can recall seeing a picture of Sitting Bull and learning about the Battle of the Little Bighorn and Custer. I learned about the great western migration of immigrants, Westward Ho and Manifest Destiny. I did not learn about the tribes I am a descendent or a member of and I was raised on one of the largest reservations in Washington with a ceded area of approximately 11.5 million acres.

As an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) – the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla People – our history in south central and southeast Washington and the other Stephens/Palmer Treaty tribes is much more than “almost a chapter in our history books.”

Why does a federally recognized tribe in Oregon care about a Washington law that requires common schools to teach tribal history, culture, and government?

Articles of agreement and convention in our treaty were concluded at Camp Stevens in the Walla Walla Valley on June 9, 1855.  In the Preamble to our treaty, Territorial Gov. and Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Territory of Washington, Isaac I. Stevens assumed to treat with our tribes and bands residing within the Territory of Washington. Joel Palmer, superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Oregon Territory, assumed to treat those residing in Oregon.

The Umatilla Indian Reservation is located in northeast Oregon. We own approximately 11,000 acres of trust land in Washington.

Our history, culture and government are factors to governments in the region, as we protect and promote our treaty-reserved rights. In Article 6 of the U.S. Constitution, “all Treaties made…under the Authority of the United States, shall be the Supreme Law of the Land…”

In Article V of our treaty, it stipulated that Walla Walla Chief Pio-pio-mox-mox would have the right to build and occupy a house near the mouth of the Yakama River. This did not occur as Chief Pio-pio-mox-mox was taken hostage and killed on Dec. 6, 1855.

State Rep. John McCoy (38th LD) was the primary sponsor of SHB 1495. The bill was approved by Gov. Christine Gregoire on April 28, 2005, and became effective on July 24, 2005.

The CTUIR provided testimony to the original bill (HB 1495), and SHB 1495 successfully became inclusive of “federally recognized Indian tribes whose traditional land and territories included parts of Washington, but who now reside in Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia.  School districts and tribes were encouraged to work together to develop such curricula. The keyword regarding the law was encouraging.

In 2015, Substitute Senate Bill (SSB) 5433 regarding tribal education was passed, amending the 2005 legislation. As passed, SSB 5433 required, not encouraged, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and school districts to collaborate and incorporate curricula about the 29 federally recognized Indian tribes whose reservations are located in Washington. By amendment, SSB 5433 removed the requirement that school districts near Washington’s borders must work with tribes in Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia to develop curriculum.

The ceded area of the CTUIR is approximately 6.4 million acres and about a quarter of it is in Washington. Our elected officials and staff are engaged with the administration, legislature and multiple state departments/agencies for the protection of our rights and interests. In December 2004, we became signatories to the Centennial Accord Between the Federally Recognized Indian Tribes with Treaty-Reserved Rights in Washington State and the State of Washington.

There are 13 school districts in our ceded area. On March 24, 2025, the CTUIR signed a memorandum of understanding with the Walla Walla Public Schools to continue educating its students about CTUIR history and culture. So while it is no longer a requirement for the Walla Walla Public Schools to work with the CTUIR by state law, Walla Walla Public Schools have continued to respect our rightful presence and the teaching of our history, culture and government in the region.

We have continued work in the Washington State Legislature in the area of education, but that is far from the extent to which we have to advocate on our behalf.

For educational purposes and to learn more about us, consider visiting our Tamástslikt Cultural Institute at 47106 Wildhorse Blvd. in Mission. For more information, call 541-429-7700 or visit: https://www.tamastslikt.org.