University of Tulsa receives $677K grant to preserve Muscogee Nation history

The University of Tulsa is partnering with the Muscogee Nation on a major cultural restoration initiative supported by a $677,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation.

The project, titled Mvskokvlke Hofone Enfulletv Rasvwetv – which means “To Bring the Ways of the Mvskoke Back” – aims to reclaim and preserve important pieces of Muscogee history and language.

The project will focus on digitizing and returning archival materials from TU’s McFarlin Library, making tribal records, language resources, and cultural documents accessible once again to the community.

A Partnership for Cultural Reclamation

The collaboration between TU and the Muscogee Nation Historic and Cultural Preservation Department seeks to restore access to historical materials that were separated from Indigenous communities and held in settler archives across the country.

Why This Work Is Important

Officials say the work is rooted in the need to reclaim tribal identities, languages and histories that have been lost or fragmented through generations of displacement and erasure. Making these materials available again is a step toward cultural healing and continuity.

How the Mellon Grant Will Be Used

The $677,000 award will fund the digitization of key archival items, the development of an accessible digital archive, and community-focused efforts to ensure the materials are returned and maintained by the Muscogee Nation.