Facing Our History: Join the ELCA’s Truth-Telling Work on Indian Boarding Schools
The ELCA’s Truth-Seeking and Truth-Telling Initiative is expanding nationwide in 2026, inviting both clergy and lay leaders to participate in a growing effort to research Lutheran involvement in Indian boarding and day schools dating back to the 1820s. Individuals across the Grand Canyon Synod are encouraged to learn more and sign up at tstti.org.
This initiative brings Lutherans together to uncover and share the truth about the church’s role in Indian boarding schools—institutions that caused deep and lasting harm to Native communities by separating children from their families, language, and culture. The work focuses on gathering historical records, educating the church, and participating in an ongoing process of truth-telling and healing.
Since its launch in 2022 with 15 synods, the initiative has grown to include 27 synods across ten states. Now, it is expanding to all ELCA synods nationwide. More than 100 clergy and lay participants are already engaged in research, education, and conversation, contributing to a shared understanding of this history and its ongoing impact.
This work is both historical and deeply theological. As Lutherans, we are called to confess truthfully, to name sin, and to seek reconciliation. The legacy of Indian boarding schools—including abuse, cultural erasure, and intergenerational trauma—continues to affect Indigenous individuals, families, and communities. Telling the truth is one step toward healing—for Native peoples and for the church itself.
Participants in the initiative engage in quarterly online gatherings, educational opportunities, and research projects that align with their skills and availability. Volunteers are needed in areas such as research, data collection, organizing, education, and leadership. All are welcome.
Recent efforts have identified Lutheran involvement in multiple boarding and day schools, including archival materials now being digitized and studied. The 2025 ELCA Churchwide Assembly also passed a memorial encouraging congregations and synods to observe the National Day of Remembrance for Indian Boarding Schools on September 30 and to continue education and communication around this history.
As awareness grows—especially following discoveries of unmarked graves at boarding school sites in North America—the church is asking important questions: What was our role? And how will we respond? This initiative seeks to answer those questions with honesty, humility, and a commitment to healing.
We invite members of the Grand Canyon Synod to join this important work. Learn more and express your interest at tstti.org.
