In May 2023, Goucher College announced a Land Acknowledgement Statement that was created by Special Collections & Archives staff. The project took over a year to write due to its sensitive nature and the intentionality of each word. The authors felt that the process was also a significant part of the story and wrote a process paper describing the experience. This fall semester, a new exhibit highlighting the process of writing a land acknowledgment statement is opening outside Special Collections for the academic year. The land acknowledgement statement was composed in dialogue with and in response to the words and perspectives of the tribal members who have a kinship with this land. The tribal elders and/or members with whom the working group consulted included Chief Mark Tayac (Piscataway Indian Nation), Rico Newman (Choptico Band of Indians, Piscataway Conoy Tribe), Jess McPherson (Susquehanna/Shawnee), Mario Harley (Piscataway Conoy Tribe), and Ayanna Proctor (Piscataway Conoy Tribe/Susquehannock).
