Ho-Chunk Nation Flag Raising Ceremony

At 10:00 am on September 15, the University of Wisconsin–Madison will raise the flag of the Ho-Chunk Nation on campus.

During the upcoming Fall 2022 semester, UW–Madison will fly the Ho-Chunk Nation flag for more than six weeks, including Indigenous Peoples Day in October and the entirety of National Native American Heritage month in November.

Please join Ho-Chunk Nation President Marlon WhiteEagle and UW–Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin, Elliott Funmaker, Sr. and the Wisconsin Dells Singers, along with other citizens of the Ho-Chunk Nation and members of the UW–Madison community, for the outdoor ceremony in front of Bascom Hall. (In the event of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held in room 260 of Bascom Hall; for updates, please visit this page as the date of the event approaches.)

There will be limited seating for guests; others are welcome to view the ceremony from public spaces on Bascom Hill. Following the flag raising, Ho-Chunk students, staff and faculty are invited to join Chancellor Mnookin and President WhiteEagle for a private reception in Bascom Hall. For more information and to RSVP to attend, please email Carrie Olson at carrie.olson@wisc.edu.

The flying of the Ho-Chunk flag at the beginning of our academic year highlights our foundational relationship with the Ho-Chunk people. It is also a reminder of our ongoing commitment through the university’s Our Shared Future initiative to educate the campus community about Ho-Chunk culture, First Nations history, and to recognize the land as the ancestral home of the Ho-Chunk, who have stewarded this land since time immemorial.

Flag raisings are part of contemporary Ho-Chunk culture. Members of the Ho-Chunk Nation regularly host flag-raising ceremonies with local governments and educational institutions to share their culture, honor veterans, and to strengthen ties across communities. In November 2021, UW–Madison raised the Ho-Chunk Nation flag for the first time.

Accommodations: If you require a disability-related accommodation, please email Maryellen Pawley at maryellen.pawley@wisc.edu.

Accessible route information: The following accessible routes are noted on the accessible pedestrian route map:

• Observatory and Bascom bus stop
• From lower Observatory Drive by Science Hall through Lot 9
• Between Law and Music buildings from Lot 5

For additional routes, consult the accessible pedestrian routes document at https://www.map.wisc.edu/accessible-pedestrian-routes.pdf.