Our History

The Indigenous Wisdom Curriculum has a rich history that dates back to 2011. An initial gathering was convened by Regis Pecos (Leadership Institute at Santa Fe Indian School) and Ron Solimon (Indian Pueblo Cultural Center) to engage Pueblo People from across the state in a dialogue to provide guidance on a historic project to honor all those that have gone before us and to provide those to follow with a set of documented life experiences to understand and appreciate these life lessons, primarily over the last 100 years, to guide future generations of Pueblo people. Initially, the curriculum was titled “100 Years of State and Federal Policy: Its Impact Upon Pueblo Nations” to coincide with a special exhibition at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center Museum. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Leadership Institute at the Santa Fe Indian School provided generous support throughout the curriculum development process. Several years later, the title of the curriculum was changed to “Indigenous Wisdom.”

The curriculum that follows is revised and updated to provide educators with thoughtful unit plans on the complex political, social, cultural, and economic history of the Pueblo Nations of New Mexico from 1912 to present times. The curriculum serves as a counter narrative to the official presentation of the history of New Mexico presented in schools today. At the center of the curriculum are concepts and core values that have operated as vehicles for resistance, emancipation, and transformation for Pueblo People as we maintain our cultural integrity and exercise sovereignty in the face of colonizing measures taken by Spain (1521 – 1821), Mexico (1821 – 1847), and the United States (1847 – present). The curriculum was designed to help elementary, middle, and high school teachers educate their students about the factors and conditions that shaped relationships – government-to-government, community-to-community, culture-to-culture, and person-to-person – throughout periods of turmoil and peaceful coexistence. The curriculum is rich with instructional strategies, resources, and Pueblo-centered cultural knowledge that will be valuable to students from diverse backgrounds and dispositions in life. The main goal of the curriculum is for Indigenous students and their teachers to become intellectually aware of the critical roles of Pueblo People in exercising agency as they met (and continue to meet) the imposition and challenges of federal and state policies on our quality of life as a sovereign entities. The authors of this curriculum believe that a critical sociohistorical education is an effective avenue to strengthen our home communities and to develop an increased awareness and examination of present day manifestations of historic oppression.

The historical narratives embedded in the curriculum presents Pueblo Peoples as engaged, thriving, and owners of their knowledge systems. This curriculum aims to implement Indigenous knowledge systems in an effort to expand academic forms of understanding and to show that Indigenous ways of knowing are a major component in empowering all communities for many millennia to come.

Thank you for your interest in this very important educational resource and we wish you well.

The process

The first edition of this curriculum was completed in collaboration with educators, leaders, community organizers, and elders from the nineteen Pueblo Nations as a political project in response to the centennial of statehood for New Mexico. The original project began in 2011 with the encouragement of the late Pueblo scholar, Joe Sando, who reminded us about the significance of history – oral and written – in developing and maintaining a strong foundation of cultural identity as individuals and as Pueblo nations.

With continued demand by teachers for culturally-relevant, Pueblo-based curriculum across the state of New Mexico and the United States far beyond the culmination of New Mexico’s centennial commemorations, the rebranding of the curriculum emerged as “Indigenous Wisdom.” The renaming of this curriculum project was an intentional way to capture the timeless nature – both historic and contemporary – of the teachings, core values, and perspectives provided in the curriculum.

The lead curriculum development team, under the project management of the Education Department, convened in the Spring of 2021 to plan the second edition of the Indigenous Wisdom curriculum. Educators from different Pueblo Nations were invited to review and revise existing unit plans; some reviewers were the original writers and some were content experts, new to the Indigenous Wisdom process.

Pueblo Core Values Focus

Pueblo core values serve as the foundation of Pueblo cultures that have existed since time immemorial. Core values form the basis of a way of life that Pueblo people recognize as essential to building and maintaining the interconnectedness that holds a community together. In this curriculum, each lesson identifies a core value that exemplifies a key aspect of Pueblo life and culture. As well, each lesson is meant to challenge students’ thinking about their own values and draw them into a deeper awareness of how Pueblo history and cultural perspectives compare with their own experiences.

Six core values have been emphasized in this curriculum. A brief definition and examples drawn from historical references are provided as illustrations of each core value.

Love

As a core value refers to the positive emotions that a Pueblo Nation and its people feels for the land, the water, the air, the ecology, the ceremonies, the people, and beliefs. This Love is not romantic, but rather Love motivates and inspires one to engage in the daily life of the community including its ceremonial life from a place of deep affection, devotion and respect.


  • Historical reference: The 64 year-long struggle by the people of Taos Pueblo to regain Taos Blue Lake, that was taken by the U.S. Federal Government in 1906, was motivated by love of this sacred site. In 1906, president Theodore Roosevelt signed an executive order to seize control of the Taos water shed as a part of what would become the Kit Carson National Forest. Despite protests by Taos Pueblo, who held title to the property for centuries, the U.S. government assumed control of 48,000 acres of property, opening the land to the public for tourism, recreation and logging. References to love of this special place are embedded in the prayers, songs, and oratories of this Pueblo as are other important cultural sites. The Zuni Salt Lake and Mt. Taylor are additional examples of sacred sites that hold special significance to other Pueblos.

Faith

Is trust in one’s family, community, and humanity-at-large for support, loyalty, and unconditional love. Faith is believing in a sacred way of life.


  • Historical reference: In 1924, the Council of All New Mexico Pueblos wrote a response to the infamous 1923 message “To All Indians” from Charles Burke, U.S. Commissioner on Indian Affairs. Mr. Burke instructed Indian commissioners to “prohibit some Indian dances and restrict others to once a month.” The custom of Pueblo dances as a seasonal activity and way of life is not viewed as a religious activity by Pueblo people but rather a custom conducted for their ancestors and an art forms intrinsic to a way of life. In their response, Pueblo leaders affirmed their collective support of their Pueblo relations to exercise their fundamental right to religious liberty.

Respect

Refers to acts of reverence towards Pueblo culture, elders, ceremonial life, the earth and its natural resources, the air, and the universe. It is at the foundation of how one addresses and treats all forms of life. This includes acts of reverence to the ecology, songs, prayers, and all elements of Pueblo life and culture.


  • Historical reference: The Pueblo canes represent the authority endowed upon selected Pueblo officials to hold leadership positions within our Pueblo communities. These canes are held in high respect by Pueblo people. The canes are passed onto new Pueblo officials at the beginning of their term, serving the community and all matters pertaining to the Pueblo (internal and external).

Balance

Refers to the act of maintaining a healthy equilibrium of the ecosystem and humanity, recognizing the finite or limited quantities of earth’s resources. We take only what is actually needed without depleting the supply. It is connected to the concept of sharing, replenishing and reciprocity.


  • Historical reference: In the Abeyta Water adjudication lawsuit, Taos Pueblo worked with the Taos Valley Acequia Association, the Town of Taos, the El Prado Water and Sanitation District 12 Taos, and the State of New Mexico in creating a more balanced and equitable plan for sharing water resources. The benefits included: quantification of the Taos Pueblo’s aboriginal water rights, establishing a mechanism for protecting the Pueblo’s sacred Buffalo Pasture, obligations to offset surface water depletion, allocation of San Juan Chama Project water, protection of acequia water rights and sharing and refraining from priority calls.

Compassion

Is the expression of empathy, concern, care, and kindness towards the universe, the ecology, humanity, and all that breathes and that are connected to the earth. This includes acts of providing for those who are in need of sustenance, shelter, prayers, songs, and advice.


  • Historical reference: Many Native Americans, served in WWII, including men from the Pueblos of New Mexico. Men from our New Mexico Pueblos endured hardship as a prisoner of war on the 80-mile Bataan Death March. The prisoners supported one another the best that they could in the face of starvation, exhaustion, and abuse.

Service

Is the act of helping one’s family, local community, and community-at-large. Acts of service sustain families in times of need, through cultural cycles, and during ceremonial life. The foundation of service is based on love of family and community; providing help and resources at all times which may necessitate personal time away from family, work, and recreation. It can also mean the opportunity to be with family and the community working together.


  • Historical reference: After serving in World War II, Miguel Trujillo (USMC) from Isleta Pueblo was denied the right to vote in his local elections. Mr. Trujillo and his team of attorneys petitioned the U.S. Federal District Court in New Mexico for an injunction. Mr. Trujillo’s attorneys argued that the provision in the 1912 New Mexico State Constitution “Indians not taxed” was in conflict with the fifteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Through an act of service to Indians of New Mexico to stand up and fight in the court of law, the 1948 case Garley v. Trujillo, Miguel Trujillo made it possible for suffrage to be granted to all American Indian People of New Mexico.