DECE MBE R 2023
DECEMBER 2023 • NEWS • CONFEDERATED UMATILLA JOURNAL CONFEDERATED UMATILLA JOURNAL
Students, youth and tribal employees celebrate Native American Heritage Month, PAGES B10 & B11
NEWS DAILY @ CUJ ONLINE
VOLUME 31 • ISSUE 12
THE MONTHLY NEWSPAPER OF THE CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF THE UMATILLA INDIAN RESERVATION
Newly elected officials take office Nov. 29 By CHRIS AADLAND Reporter
Chief Judge William Johnson administers the oath of office to the newly elected tribal leaders Wednesday morning, Nov. 29, in the rotunda of the Nixyáawii Governance Center. LISA SNELL | CUJ
MISSION – Recently elected tribal leaders officially began their terms Nov. 29 after a standing-room only swearing in ceremony at the Nixyáawii Governance Center. Six freshly elected citizens of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) joined six re-elected members on the Board of Trustees, the tribal governing body that sets policy and priorities, makes decisions on projects and decides how to handle tribal affairs. For its new two-year term, the Board will be led by several new officers, including Chair Gary Burke, who defeated incumbent N. Kathryn Brigham in the Nov. 14 election. OFFICIALS CONTINUED PAGE 4
Parent pushback leads to day care rate hike pause MISSION – A now-paused drastic increase in the cost to parents who send children to the tribally owned day care gave some families relief last month while putting pressure on tribal leaders as they ponder potential long-term solutions to meet a need for more child care options. In late August, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) Education’s Ataw Myanasma Learning Center informed parents that day care rates
would increase between 62% and 74%, saying the jump was needed to unlock additional grant funding for lower-income families, higher additional staff and increase wages. For the families who don’t qualify for day care tuition assistance, the jump in rates would’ve meant hundreds of extra dollars a month in child care costs, leading one shocked family to press tribal leaders in the weeks that followed to address their concerns. That advocacy resulted in a Board of Trustees work session on Nov. 8 and a Special General Council meeting the following day.
CTUIR 46411 Timine Way Pendleton, OR 97801
By CHRIS AADLAND Reporter
Those meetings led to the tribe saying that it would not increase the rates – for now – but also reinforced the opinion of some tribal leaders of the need for a longer-term solution and to address other questions, such as how to eliminate a long waitlist for services at the tribally owned day care, that have languished for years. “I see it as a partial victory,” said Denise Wickert, the CTUIR tribal member and parent of two who was facing sharp increases and pushed tribal leaders to address her concerns. DAY CARE CONTINUED PAGE 6
The CTUIR Housing Department has pre-built two shelters for placement east of the longhouse. The shelters will provide a warm, dry place to sleep on nights the temperatures drop to unsafe levels. CTUIR HOUSING DEPT. | COURTESY
Tribe taking first steps toward homelessness solutions By CHRIS AADLAND Reporter MISSION – Tribal members experiencing homelessness will soon have a place to stay warm during the cold, long winter nights as tribal leaders work to prepare a long-term plan to address homelessness. At its Oct. 30 meeting, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation’s (CTUIR) Board of Trustees approved a motion to initiate the process of placing two small structures on Confederated Way near the education building and preparing them to give homeless tribal members on the reservation a warm place to shelter overnight. The two pods are the first step in HOMELESS CONTINUED PAGE 7
SPORTS ROUND UP: See pages B12 & B13
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