Guest Lecture
You are invited to a lecture by Tanna Engdahl
The Ever Evolution of the Mysterious Cowlitz
Tuesday, November 18, 2025
1:00 – 3:00 p.m. (doors open 12:30 p.m.)
Gaiser Student Center, Clark College Main Campus
Multi-lingual Cowlitz strongholds dotted the Southwest Washington rivers. Driven to near extinction, the people survived the brutality of disease and displacement. Their endurance and restless energy are infused in their emergence as an economic driver in multiple counties. Education, economies, and culture were the faith-based foundation upon which the Cowlitz re-built a modern tribe, never forgetting that the endless force of their ancestors is built into the earth upon which they reside.
About Tanna Engdahl
Tanna Engdahl is the Spiritual Leader of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. A lifelong keeper of Cowlitz history and stories passed down from her grandmother, she has devoted her career to advancing tribal rights and cultural knowledge. Tanna became the first American Indian and first woman reporter at KIRO-TV in Seattle, later serving more than 30 years in federal land and tribal management with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. She pioneered cultural consultation programs between tribes and federal agencies and continues to teach and collaborate with Cowlitz Tribal historian Mike Iyall. As a Spiritual Leader, she officiates ceremonies, guides cultural practice, and serves on several local boards and committees as an advocate for Clark County.
FREE and Open to the Public
For Clark College employees, full attendance at this event will satisfy a Power, Privilege, and Inequity (PPI) training.
If you need an accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, please contact Clark College’s Human Resources Office. Phone: 360-992-2105 Email: hr@clark.edu