The fifth annual Muscogee Teach-In will take place at the Emory Student Center beginning at 2:30 p.m. with registration required for the event that brings members of the Muscogee Nation to campus to lead discussions and activities. Emory’s Center for Native American and Indigenous Studies is coordinating the program alongside volunteers from the Native American Student Association who will assist with guest services. According to Emory News the gathering continues a collaboration that seeks to educate the university community about Muscogee history and culture while strengthening ties between the institution and the tribe.
Emory’s Oxford and Atlanta campuses sit on land originally occupied by the Muscogee people who were displaced in 1821 15 years before the university’s founding according to multiple Emory News reports on past teach-ins. The teach-in series began in 2021 as a response to discussions by the Indigenous Language Path Working Group on how to address that historical displacement of Indigenous sovereign nations from Georgia and the Southeast. A 2025 Emory News article noted that the program has grown each year with citizens of the Muscogee Nation and students from the College of the Muscogee Nation taking leading roles in developing the content.
This year’s milestone fifth edition will highlight art and culture through Muscogee storytelling from the Mvskoke Language Program community stomp dance performances and demonstrations of traditional artistic practices Emory News reported. The program will also include opportunities for participants to engage directly with cultural elements that have been passed down through generations. Organizers have structured the event to emphasize both preservation and contemporary expressions of Muscogee identity in line with the series’ established format.
RaeLynn Butler the Muscogee Nation’s secretary of culture and humanities will deliver the keynote discussion according to the university announcement. Butler who is based in Oklahoma was appointed to the perpetual role in 2024 with responsibilities centered on cultural preservation outreach and practices Emory News stated in coverage of the previous year’s event. In that earlier appearance Butler said “Our mission is to revitalize reclaim promote restore and preserve the rich cultural legacy heritage and values of the Muscogee and Euchee people.”
Malinda Maynor Lowery the Emory Cahoon Family Professor of American History and a member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina will provide opening remarks on the importance of the teach-in. Lowery has participated in prior editions of the program contributing historical context and supporting the relationship-building between Emory and the Muscogee Nation. Emory News accounts of the fourth annual teach-in described an audience of around 200 people attending similar sessions that combined education with cultural participation.
The Muscogee Nation counts more than 100,000 enrolled citizens yet a 2024 study estimated fewer than 300 first-language Mvskoke speakers remain most of them over age 60 according to reporting by The Oklahoman. Muscogee Nation Principal Chief David Hill has highlighted the loss of approximately 200 fluent speakers and knowledge keepers during the COVID-19 pandemic prompting an executive order for language revitalization efforts that includes immersion programs. The teach-in series at Emory supports these broader preservation initiatives by creating space for language practice storytelling and cultural transmission within an academic setting.
The event is sponsored by Emory’s Center for Native American and Indigenous Studies the Office of the Provost the James Weldon Johnson Institute and the Office of Spiritual and Religious Life according to the university. Past iterations have concluded with ceremonial stomp dances that foster community participation between Muscogee representatives and Emory attendees. Emory News indicated that the fifth-year focus on art and culture builds directly on the foundation established in earlier teach-ins to deepen understanding of Muscogee contributions and resilience.
