Stockbridge-Munsee Community
Tribal Liaison
Staff
About
The Tribal Liaison engages with members of our Community as well as the general public and media on many subjects related to the tribe’s historical and present-day affairs. Our office handles questions regarding land acknowledgments as well as requests from schools, museums, nonprofits and community groups eager to learn about and support our tribe.
These services complement the work of the Tribal Historic Preservation Office in our homeland region, which encompasses parts of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont.
The Stockbridge Munsee Community is a sovereign nation. When engaging our office or any other part of the tribal government, members of the public should think of this as comparable to working with the government of a foreign country. We strive to help with outside inquiries and requests, while honoring our primary duty to our tribe and its members.
Frequently Asked Questions
The tribe receives many requests for presentations. We appreciate the interest in and support for our Community!
We recommend that you start with our excellent online resources:
- Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican History in Williamstown, MA
- Mohican Miles, an exhibition curated by the Stockbridge-Munsee Cultural Affairs Department
- The Long Journey Home: Return of Papscanee Island, a story map created by the Stockbridge-Munsee Community and the Open Space Institute
- Stockbridge, MA, Walking Tour
You can also access pre-recorded presentations on several frequently-requested topics. These are a great, low-cost way of hearing from tribal members directly. Thank you for giving full and proper credit if you use these materials. It is helpful if you include a link to our website.
In select cases we can sometimes arrange for a member of the tribe to present to or attend events, either virtually or in person. All travel, lodging, meals, honoraria, etc., are the sole responsibility of the hosting organization.
If you are interested in extending an invitation for this purpose, please fill out our Presentation Request. We will use the information to determine whether we can fulfill your request. Speaker appearances can only be considered if we receive them at least 90 days in advance of the event date.
- We appreciate interest in acknowledging our sovereignty and our historic and ongoing presence in our homelands. Please use our established land acknowledgment for this purpose. It is pre-approved and available for your use.
Simple changes (for example, adding the name of your specific organization) do not require advance permission. However, please respect our preferred language and do not make major modifications.
In rare cases we will consider requests for help with customized acknowledgments. Such acknowledgments must go through a detailed review process with our tribal government, so are only recommended when an organization needs to recognize specific events, actions or individuals as part of a restorative process.
- The tribe welcomes donations to our Arvid E. Miller Memorial Library and Museum, the official repository for the archives of the Stockbridge Munsee Community. To donate, please use the online form.
The Tribe is a sovereign nation, not a nonprofit. While we appreciate the offers of other forms of support, in most cases we regretfully cannot accept donations of money or property.
If you have or know of objects that may be related to our Ancestors and our cultural heritage, please contact the Tribal Historic Preservation Office.
- All media/reporter requests must submit their questions in writing. You can email Tribal Liaison Sherry White at sherry.white@mohican-nsn.gov. Your questions will be reviewed and and answered in writing.
Because we are a sovereign nation, our tribal government must authorize any official comment from the tribe. We appreciate you allowing time for this in any requests.
Comment, if granted, will come from the Stockbridge-Munsee tribal government and its officials. Since our Community is made up of many individuals with their own personal views, we do not respond to inquiries about what “the tribe,” or Indigenous people generally, think or feel about any topic.
Presenters
Our office is always looking for volunteers interested in getting trained as presenters on topics related to the tribe.
If you would like to represent the Tribe as a volunteer presenter, thank you for your interest. Please fill out the Presenter Application with details about your relevant knowledge and skills,
Submitting this form does not guarantee you will be selected as a presenter. We try to match applications to specific requests received by our office.
Some presentation work may require travel (expenses will be paid by the host organization). We sometimes have opportunities for people who are willing to lead virtual or pre-recorded presentations without travel.
The information in your application will not be shared with anyone outside our office without your approval.