Tacoma Public Schools has quietly settled a lawsuit after Lincoln High School blocked an Indigenous senior from wearing a sacred button blanket during her 2024 graduation ceremony. The case, brought on behalf of graduate Gracie Belle Ray, was dismissed on June 8 after attorneys on both sides told the court they had reached an agreement. Her family’s lawyers say the decision cost Ray a once-in-a-lifetime cultural moment that no settlement can restore.
As reported by The News Tribune, the district agreed to pay “a large number” to resolve claims that it violated state law and discriminated against Ray, though the exact figure remains confidential. The lawsuit states that Ray, an enrolled member of the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Tribes of Alaska, was told she could not wear a red and black button blanket gifted by the Nisqually Tribe when she walked the stage in June 2024. In court filings, the district described the incident as a mistake stemming from miscommunications among staff.
What the law requires
Under state law RCW 28A.600.500, school districts are prohibited from stopping students who are members of federally recognized tribes from wearing traditional tribal regalia or objects of Native American cultural significance at graduation ceremonies. The law also directs districts to update local policies so those protections are clear and consistently applied. The statute, which took effect in March 2020, was written to prevent the kind of exclusion Ray experienced. You can read the law at the Washington State Legislature.
Lawyers and the student
Ray’s attorney Seth Rosenberg has argued that what happened was not a harmless mix-up. He told The News Tribune that the principal appeared to understand the cultural significance of the blanket. “It’s one of those incidents that it’s hard to see how there was a misunderstanding about it,” Rosenberg said. Co-counsel Joseph Gehrke said the settlement should serve as a prompt for other districts to make sure staff know the law and follow it. In court documents, Ray described the button blanket as a sacred item that links her to her ancestors.
District response and Indian education
In its public posture, Tacoma Public Schools has pointed to its Indian Education program and state guidance as central to how it is responding and trying to avoid a repeat. The district’s Indian Education pages reference RCW 28A.600.500 and include a link to a bulletin from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction that urges districts to consult with tribal governments and update graduation policies, procedures and practices accordingly. For district-level information, see Tacoma Public Schools, and for statewide recommendations, review the OSPI Bulletin 014-23 from OSPI.
What this settlement means
The settlement closes the legal chapter but leaves bigger questions on the table about training, communication and school culture. The protections are written into state law, yet it is up to local districts to build the relationships and internal guidance that OSPI has recommended so students are not stripped of ceremonial moments by confusion or last-minute calls.
Ray’s attorneys have framed the agreement as both a measure of justice for their client and a cautionary tale for other districts that fail to honor tribal regalia at graduation, with potential legal and reputational fallout. With the dismissal now filed, future public records or additional filings could reveal more about how Tacoma Public Schools puts the guidance it cites into practice.
