Tulsa tribal commission reviews Muscogee settlement workgroup, school mascot plan and Native American Day logistics

The Greater Tulsa Area Indian Affairs Commission met Aug. 19 at City Hall and heard reports on the city's settlement process with the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, a recent Oklahoma Supreme Court decision affecting tribal jurisdiction questions, planning for Native American Day, and a Tulsa Public Schools branding proposal for Webster High School imagery.

Commission Chair Linda Lee Berlin called the meeting to order and the panel approved its June 17 meeting minutes by voice vote.

The commission's director of tribal policy and partnership, Amanda (title in meeting record: Director of Tribal Policy and Partnership), reported that the city and the Muscogee Nation had reached a settlement agreement and submitted it to the court the week of June 19. "We were able to finally come to a place of settlement agreement and get that submitted back to the court," Amanda said, and she said the commission and the nation have scheduled the first workgroup meeting established by that settlement for the day after the commission meeting to begin implementation planning. She told commissioners some court rulings in the case remain pending, including whether the judge will accept the agreement and whether the state or governor will be allowed to sign on as a party.

The commission also discussed several city-nation partnership items Amanda described as moving forward: implementation progress on a Southern TIF district that had planning-commission approval; outreach and early coordination on the South Tulsa Dam project, which city staff said remains roughly a decade from construction pending surveys and updated cost estimates; and an arts-related Memorandum of Understanding tied to a ballpark property that will accompany deed language and requires final PSO easement information before City Council consideration.

In the vice chair report, the commission discussed a recent Oklahoma Supreme Court decision in Straubel v. Oklahoma Tax Commission that panel members said departs from federal court precedent on reservation status after McGirt. The vice chair described the state court's reasoning as treating a reservation as "for criminal purposes, not civil," and called the ruling "very frustrating." "This is the first time, you know, that that I'm aware of where the court's ever tried to say you have a reservation for 1 purpose, but not another," the vice chair said, adding that federal courts have reached a different conclusion in related rulings.

Education committee members briefed the commission on a Tulsa Public Schools proposal from Superintendent Johnson regarding mascot imagery at Webster High School and Central High School. Committee member Sherry Williams summarized the superintendent's approach: "Doctor Johnson has made the decision to keep the name, Webster Warriors, and to remove the imagery and to rebrand with, community, students, alumni, everyone together working together to, be united in, the new imagery." Williams said the district is proposing a school branding policy that would prohibit "negative or offensive or derogatory imagery" across schools, and that the school board will consider the policy again in a September meeting. The commission voted to have two commissioners (Daniel and another commissioner to draft) draft a letter endorsing the principle that the district listen to students most affected by the imagery, then bring that draft back for commission review at the next meeting.

Commissioners also received an update from the Native American Day committee about event planning for the Oct. 13 celebration. The committee said the Osage Nation has donated $10,000 toward the event and that the parade route may need a contingency plan because city crews are replacing the street (not only sidewalks) on Eighteenth Street; the street department told planners the work is scheduled to be complete by September but warned contingencies may be needed. The committee plans to meet with Tulsa Police Department on route alternatives and will implement new vendor parking rules that allow vendors to drive in and unload but not leave vehicles on the park. The commission encouraged continuing volunteer recruitment and vendor sign-ups through social channels the city now manages for the event.

On commission operations, the chair opened a discussion about moving the commission's regular meeting start time earlier to help City Council staff that run the city's meeting broadcasts. Staff indicated that a move from 6:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. could be feasible for many but not all commissioners; several members said 5:00 p.m. would be too early. Commissioners agreed to revisit the question at the September meeting after polling the members who were absent from the Aug. 19 session.

The commission also completed internal business: the chair appointed Matt Roberts to serve as nominating committee chair and commissioners elected Wynetta Lohrey and Linda (Lee Berlin) to serve on that nominating committee with him. The vote to appoint the two committee members passed by voice vote.

Other committee reports noted ongoing work on ordinance/bylaw amendments the bylaws committee is negotiating with the City of Tulsa legal department, parks-design work that will begin after contract execution with TSW, and an arts-and-cultural outreach connection between the airport and tribal cultural secretaries for public art opportunities.

The meeting closed with an announcement from the Department of Resilience and Equity about Welcoming Week activities for immigrant and refugee communities and an adjournment by voice vote.

Why it matters: the items addressed at the meeting touch on the implementation steps for a court-submitted settlement with the Muscogee Nation, coordination of major infrastructure and cultural projects that involve tribal partners, and a locally contentious school-branding decision that directly involves Native students and tribal leaders. Those topics could affect intergovernmental relationships, future city council actions, and community recognition during the coming months.

What the commission will do next: the commission scheduled further action on the school-branding letter (draft to be returned for approval) and will re-open the discussion of meeting time at its next regular meeting after polling absent members.