Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Program (NAGPRA) Inventory
Native American ancestors and funerary objects at SF State are affiliated with both federally recognized and non-federally recognized Native Californian tribes and groups. Most of the items in the NAGPRA collections are from the San Francisco Bay Area (counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara).
Notices of Inventory Completion for Federally Recognized Tribes
Notices of Inventory Completion have been published in the Federal Register for site holdings containing ancestors at SF State that have been claimed by federally recognized tribes. (See Program Documents.)
Culturally Unidentifiable Native American Items
An Inventory of Culturally Unidentifiable Native American items was submitted to the National NAGPRA Program in 2005. (See Program Documents)
Summary of Potential Unassociated Funerary Objects, Sacred Objects, and Objects of Cultural Patrimony
In May 1996, SF State's Summary of the Native American ethnographic collection in the Treganza Museum was distributed to federally recognized Native American tribes, Alaska Native Corporations, and Native Hawaiian Organizations (identified by the National Park Service as of 1994). The Summary was also provided to the State of California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC). Since distribution, several tribes have requested additional information regarding objects that may have an affiliation with those tribes.
California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Program (NAGPRA)
The SF State NAGPRA Program complies with California State NAGPRA law (AB 978 and AB 275) SF State will submit its federal NAGPRA Summaries and Inventories to the California Native American Heritage Commission in April 2022. The SF State NAGPRA Program welcomes consultation under Cal NAGPRA/ AB 275.
Federal, State, and Private Archaeological Firm Holdings
SF State houses site collections for the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), California Department of Parks and Recreation, U.S. Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and other federal and state agencies. Currently, SF State serves as a repository for these collections. NAGPRA compliance for these collections is the responsibility of the controlling agency. All private archaeological firm holdings at SF State are now under university legal control. SF State does not accept new collections unless they originated from SF State.
SF State NAGPRA Tribal Consultation Policy
The SF State NAGPRA Program consults with federally recognized and non-federally recognized tribes and groups about the cultural affiliation and appropriate treatment of Native American ancestors and cultural objects at SF State.
SF State is committed to responding to tribal inquiries regarding Native American holdings in the NAGPRA Program in an efficient manner. We encourage tribal representatives to consult with us about cultural items at SF State that may be affiliated with their tribe.
List of Counties and States
The SF State NAGPRA archaeological holdings include items from the following California counties: Alameda, Calaveras, Contra Costa, Colusa, Del Norte, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Kern, Lake, Los Angeles, Madera, Marin, Mariposa, Mendocino, Merced, Monterey, Napa, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Benito, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Shasta, Sonoma, Tehama, Tulare, and Tuolumne. A small number of items are from cultural sites in Nevada and Oregon.