NAGPRA Program

Mission

Since the advent of colonization, thousands of Choctaw ancestors have been excavated from their graves, and their bones and funerary objects have been put into collections around the country and the globe. The mission of the NAGPRA Program is to help Choctaw Nation repatriate these ancestors so that the Choctaw people can respectfully rebury them.

This is perhaps the most sacred duty that the Historic Preservation Department performs. Note- "NAGPRA" refers to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, but this program also works towards its mission through all available laws, relationships, and responsibilities.