The University of Utah and the Ute Indian Tribe have recommitted to a decades-long partnership central to the identity of Utah Athletics.
On Aug. 28, the university and the Tribe renewed a memorandum of understanding which allows the U's sports teams to continue using the name "Utes." The university has used the name with the full support of the tribe since the 1970s.
"This is a unique partnership in higher education," said Lori McDonald, vice president of Student Affairs. "This agreement is a wonderful example of how a state university can work in collaboration with a sovereign nation to support each other."
This year, the agreement includes detailed guidelines for Ute student scholarships, as well as a pledge from the university to send U of U Health mobile clinics to the Ute Indian Reservation in the Uinta Basin.
While a handful of other colleges and universities have Native team names-the Fighting Illini and Florida State Seminoles, for example-the university's long relationship with the tribe is unusual, McDonald said.
For more than 50 years, the University of Utah and the Ute Indian Tribe have had a formal partnership. Established in 1972, the relationship acknowledges the historical ties between the Ute Tribe and the land on which the university stands. The first MOU was signed in 2003 and has been renewed about every five years since. The previous MOU was signed in 2020 for a five-year term and extended for a year in 2025.
Through the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the University of Utah and the Ute Indian Tribe have maintained a longtime partnership which formalizes the university's respectful use of the "Utes" name, cultural engagement efforts and investment in both K-12 and higher education for the Ute Indian Tribe's students.
New Ute Tribe Scholarship Terms
The 2026 MOU includes a scholarship agreement which sets up a detailed structure, application process and award amount for recipients of the Ute Indian Scholarship. While qualifying students must submit a letter from the Ute Tribal Business Committee, scholarships will no longer be determined exclusively by membership in the Ute Tribe. (Membership in the Ute Tribe is determined by a 5/8 "blood quantum" rule.)
In the past, Ute Tribe member students could receive up to $8,000 a year in scholarship funding. Under the new agreement, students may receive $6,000 per semester, up to a total of $18,000 per year. Scholarship funding will be applied directly to a student's tuition bill and any remaining amount would be refunded to the student.
The university's Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid will provide the Tribal Education Department with an anonymized report of the total number of scholarships awarded and the amount awarded to each student.
The university commits to provide academic support to Ute Indian Tribe students and their families with the application and admissions process and once students are on campus to enhance their social, economic and academic success.
Cultural and Heath Collaboration
The university will continue to pay $100,000 a year to support and build on tribal education programs-up to $500,000 over the five-year term of the MOU.
The U also will continue outreach and support to Ute Indian students and others from Utah's federally recognized American Indian tribes through the Native Student Scholarship, the Center for Native Excellence and Tribal Engagement, the annual Pow Wow, and programs like Indigenous Storytelling Camp and IndigeSTEAM.
At the Tribe's request, U of U Health will make up to three visits annually to the Ute Indian Reservation with its existing mobile clinics-the Wellness Bus, Mobile Cancer Screening Clinic, and Mobile Dental Clinic.
Finally, the two parties agree to share expertise, with approved special advisors to President Taylor Randall on Native American Affairs, and at least two members of the Ute Tribal Business Committee advising the Center for Native Excellence.
The Role of Athletics
The university pledges to continue the Ute Proud campaign, which educates sports fans about inappropriate behavior which dishonors the Utes and other Native American populations.
Every football season, the U designates a Ute Proud game to honor the Ute Indian Tribe culture and share it with the greater community. U football players wear a specially designed Ute Proud helmet for the occasion, and members of the Northern Ute Tribe perform a traditional dance at halftime.
"It is a tremendous honor to use the Ute name for our athletics programs, and we are grateful for the special relationship that has been cultivated over many years," said Mark Harlan, University of Utah athletics director. "We also understand the significant responsibility that comes with that to honor the Ute Indian Tribe and we look forward to carrying the name forward with understanding and respect toward our state's namesake people."
