Community Education Programs

Empowering Understanding and Advocacy

The Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation, in collaboration with the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, administers community education programs to deepen public awareness of Ohlone history, resilience, and contemporary priorities. Led by Co-Chairs Julie Dominguez and Corina Arellano, these initiatives bridge ancestral knowledge with modern advocacy, fostering respect for indigenous sovereignty through accessible resources, interactive events, and curriculum integration. By highlighting cultural revitalization, land stewardship, and federal recognition efforts, we invite allies to become active stewards, honoring the Tribe's enduring presence on unceded homelands in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Muwekma Ohlone Educational Toolkit

Our flagship resource, "Makkin Mak: Nommo – We Are Still Here," is a standards-aligned toolkit for 3rd-5th grade educators, developed with New Museum Los Gatos (NUMU) and San José State University. It connects California History-Social Science and Visual Arts standards to Muwekma stories of regalia reclamation, Chochenyo language revival, land connections, and advocacy. Featuring photos from tribal exhibitions, a glossary, discussion prompts, and hands-on activities—like crafting land acknowledgments, practicing greetings in Chochenyo ("Horše t úuxi" for hello), or designing native gardens—this toolkit promotes critical thinking about indigenous continuity and invites students to create murals or volunteer in clean-ups. Download it free at muwekma.org to bring Ohlone perspectives into classrooms.

Presentations and Land Acknowledgements

Tribal members and allies deliver engaging presentations on Muwekma history, cultural practices, and current initiatives like land access and tribal village development. We offer customized land acknowledgments for events, institutions, and organizations, emphasizing reciprocal relationships with the land. Host us at your school, library, or gathering—suggested donations support speaker stipends and program sustainability. Submit requests via our online form to schedule and collaborate.

School Curriculum Integration and Youth Outreach

Partnering with Bay Area schools, we embed Muwekma history, language, and culture into curricula through workshops, guest speakers, and family engagement nights. Recent efforts include youth camps blending botany and storytelling, and integration of Chochenyo phrases into daily lessons. In 2025, we expanded outreach to foster safe spaces for Native youth education, health, and tradition, with ongoing programs in 2026 amplifying voices on colonial legacies and resilience.

Events, Exhibitions, and Collaborations

We host and co-create events like flag-raising ceremonies for Native American Heritage Month, symposia on ethnohistory, and exhibits at museums such as NUMU. Collaborations include commissioned public art, interpretive trails on accessed lands, and renaming public spaces in Chochenyo. Highlights from 2025–2026 feature Reclamation Exhibitions and MMIW awareness vigils, building alliances for federal recognition. Join us at upcoming powwows or volunteer for earth-honoring clean-ups.

Resources and Further Engagement

Explore our free resources: Muwekma Ohlone Culture photo gallery, San Jose Land Acknowledgement guide, ethnohistory from the 8,000-year-old CA-SCL-671 site, and Muwekma Ohlone Military honors. For inquiries on partnerships, email info@muwekmafoundation.org.

Our Team

Julie Dominguez

Community Education Co-Chair

Julie Dominguez on the Marine Sanchez lineage represents the nineth generation of an unbroken Ohlone Indian matrilineage going back to the 1760s of her Native ancestors’ villages. She is a Muwekma Ohlone Tribal Member and Community Education Co-Chair of the Preservation Foundation.  Julie leads initiatives promoting Ohlone history, heritage, language, and culture through programs in schools, libraries, and communities.  She is a traditional Ohlone dancer and passionate protector of her ancestral homeland of the San Francisco Bay Area.  Both her mother Geraldine Lopez Dominguez and her grandmother Julie Lopez had enrolled with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.  Julie is a San Jose mother of two, she advocates for Native youth, was very inspired by her mother's food justice legacy and activities with the greater San Francisco Bay Area Native American communities.

julie.dominguez@muwekmafoundation.org

Jill Amanno

Operations Manager

Jill Amanno, Operations Manager at the Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation, joined in 2024 to lead outreach, educational programs, and administration. Expert in business development, graphic design, and conflict resolution, she crafts impactful cultural initiatives for schools and communities, supporting tribal revitalization. A San Martin, CA resident, she advances strategic efforts for indigenous resilience and sovereignty.

jill.amanno@muwekmafoundation.org

Haley Hemm

Corina Arellano

Corina Arellano, Muwekma Ohlone Tribal Member and Board Member of the Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation, serves as Community Education Co-Chair. A dedicated dancer and mother of two boys in California shake head style dance, she leads events fostering public understanding of Ohlone history. Great-granddaughter of Albert Marine Arellano, she revitalizes culture and language daily.

corina.arellano@muwekmafoundation.org

Community Educator

Haley Hemm is an educator and program leader at the Scott Center for Social Entrepreneurship, supporting student learning via curriculum development, community partnerships, and experiential education. Her experience includes leadership at Pinewood School and teaching in Vietnam, the Dominican Republic, and Northern California. She holds a Master's in Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies from Stanford Graduate School of Education.

In August 2024, Haley began collaborating with the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe and Preservation Foundation during Hillbrook School’s Upper Campus opening in downtown San Jose. Her enthusiasm led her to join the Community Education Committee, where she provides curriculum review expertise across grade levels. A Bay Area native, she enjoys National Parks, young adult fiction, and the California coast.

katelynn.torres@muwekmafoundation.org

Community Education Co-Chair

Bernadette Quiroz

Community Ambassador

Bernadette Quiroz, Muwekma Ohlone Tribal Member and Board Member of the Preservation Foundation, chairs Language Revitalization efforts to revive the endangered Chochenyo language through innovative online tools and cultural integration. Bernadette’s great-grandmother Dolores Sanchez was born on the Sunol Rancheria in 1911 and baptized at Mission San Jose in 1912.  Dolores enrolled with her siblings in 1932 with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Dolores’ mother Ramona Marine was born on the Alisal Rancheria in 1893. Both were members of the historic federally recognized Verona Band.  Bernadette is a passionate mother of three, she supports fundraising and cherishes hearing her people speak their native tongue.

bernadette.quiroz@muwekmafoundation.org

Katelynn Torres

Bio coming soon.

katelynn.torres@muwekmafoundation.org

Community Educator

Request a Land Acknowledgement or a School Presentation

We provide K-12 programming and curriculum in public and private schools across the Bay Area at their request.

This community education service is provided at no charge, but donations are encouraged and appreciated. Please reach out!