Missoula County Public Schools debuts Native American honor song at Sentinel graduation
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Summary
At Sentinel High School’s 2025 commencement, a Missoula County Public Schools student and staff drum group performed a Native American honor song for the first time and an on-stage speaker read an indigenous land acknowledgment.
Missoula County Public Schools’ student and staff Native American drum group performed a Native American honor song during Sentinel High School’s Class of 2025 commencement, organizers said, and an on-stage speaker read an indigenous land acknowledgement before the ceremony.
The acknowledgement said the Missoula and Bitterroot valleys are “the original homelands of the Salish, Pend Oreille, and Kalispel people,” and named other tribes who frequented the area. “We honor the original stewards of this land and their descendants, many of whom continue to live, work, teach, and learn in this community,” the ceremony speaker said, asking the audience to remember that history in “our thoughts and our actions.”
The ceremony program announced the debut performance by “the Missoula County Public Schools Native American student drum group” led by Sean Whitegrass and Brittany Hunter. Attendees were asked to stand to honor graduates during the performance. The program also included a performance of the national anthem by Haley DeRosa, Reese Johnson and Kelsey LaRocque earlier in the ceremony.
School and district leaders recognized the performance and acknowledgement as part of the commencement program for Sentinel High School’s Class of 2025. The appearance was presented as a formal component of the graduation ceremony; no separate policy action or vote was recorded.
