Enrollment Department

Enrollment department

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe is a living, functioning Tribal entity consisting of blood-related families that have existed on or near the same land since time immemorial. The continued existence of the Tribe has been based on those families living, interacting and surviving together against all odds while sharing a distinct traditional culture.

To prove yourself a citizen of this Tribe it is expected that you and your family have and will continue to be involved in the social, political and cultural well-being of the Tribe.

Throughout time there have been a number of changes in our circles of life, complicating our ability to live in or near Mashpee, however, there has been an expectation that some social, political and cultural connection has always been maintained.

We are dedicated to the scrutiny and security of our tribal roll and by all accounts hold our membership’s information in the highest confidentiality.

Enrollment Moratorium

On August 22, 2023, with an Enrollment Committee quorum and full present, it was unanimously voted to implement a moratorium for all new tribal citizen applications effective September 21, 2023 with reasonable notice provided to the Tribal membership. A moratorium is a delay or a suspension of an activity. The following will be the only exceptions to which the Tribal Enrollment Committee and/or Enrollment Department will be able to provide and accept new applications for enrollment:

1. Children under the age of 2, or

2. Any person under the age of 18 whose Tribal parent(s) is an active-duty member in any U.S. Armed Forces or Merchant Marines, the applicant shall submit, at a minimum, a copy of an official order to deploy, or

3. Any person who was or are in the Foster Care system or had been adopted and have never been connected or communicated with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe by means of knowledge of lineal descendant family or Tribal activities available to them, or

4. Any person that filed a Complaint in Tribal Court on behalf of a minor child that was based on the denial of enrollment and was resolved with either a Dismissal or a Stipulation of Dismissal based on the 2017 amendments to the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Enrollment Ordinance.