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Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
Washington, D.C.— On Tuesday, September 27, 2011, the Associate Deputy Secretary Meghan Conklin at the United States Department of the Interior (DOI) and Principal Deputy Special Trustee Ray Joseph will attend the fourth regional government-to-government tribal consultation regarding the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement.
BACKGROUND ON COBELL SETTLEMENT:
The $3.4 billion Cobell settlement was approved by Congress on November 30, 2010 (Claims Resolution Act of 2010) and signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010. The Cobell Settlement will address the Federal Government’s responsibility for an historical accounting of Individual Indian trust accounts and trust mismanagement claims on behalf of more than 300,000 individual Indians. A fund of $1.5 billion will be used to compensate class members for their historical accounting, trust administration and asset mismanagement claims.
In addition, to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the "fractionation" of land interests through succeeding generations, the Settlement establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual American Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities. Up to $60 million of the $1.9 billion will be set aside to provide scholarships for post secondary higher education and vocational training for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
More information and materials can be found at www.doi.gov/cobell.
WHO: Meghan Conklin, Associate Deputy Secretary, DOI Ray Joseph, Principal Deputy Special Trustee, Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians Tribal Leaders from the Southwest Region and other regions
WHAT: Fourth Regional Tribal Consultation on Cobell Trust Land Consolidation Program
WHEN: Tuesday, September 27, 2011 Registration will begin at 7:00AM MDT Consultation will begin at 8:30AM MDT – 4:00 PM
WHERE: National Indian Programs Training Center 1011 Indian School Road, NW Suite 254 Albuquerque, NM 87104 (505) 563-3805
NOTE: All media must present government-issued photo I.D. (such as a driver’s license) and valid media credentials.
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/senior-interior-officials-attend-fourth-regional-tribal-consultation
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Associate Deputy Secretary Meghan Conklin, Principal Deputy Special Trustee Ray Joseph today were in Albuquerque, N.M., for the fourth of six regional government-to-government tribal consultations regarding the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement. The meetings with tribal leaders are a part of the Obama Administration’s commitment to reinvigorating nation-to-nation relationships with tribes.
“The consultations are integral to helping provide us with necessary information that we can use to construct an implementation strategy that benefits all of the tribal communities involved,” said Associate Deputy Secretary Conklin. “The government-to-government consultations are allowing for positive rapport with the tribes.”
Ray A. Joseph, Principal Deputy Special Trustee, Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians, expressed that “Regional Tribal Consultations are vital to the success of the trust land consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement, and fulfills the government-to-government relationship with Tribes.”
Today’s participants included leaders and representatives of a number of tribes from the Southwest Region and other Regions.
On May 27, 2011, U.S. Senior District Judge Thomas F. Hogan granted communication between representatives of the United States and Cobell class members only in regards to the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Settlement.
BACKGROUND ON COBELL SETTLEMENT:
The $3.4 billion Cobell settlement was approved by Congress on November 30, 2010 (Claims Resolution Act of 2010) and signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010. The Cobell Settlement will address the Federal Government’s responsibility for an historical accounting of Individual Indian trust accounts and trust mismanagement claims on behalf of more than 300,000 individual Indians. A fund of $1.5 billion will be used to compensate class members for their historical accounting, trust administration and asset mismanagement claims.
In addition, to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the "fractionation" of land interests through succeeding generations, the Settlement establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual American Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities. Up to $60 million of the $1.9 billion will be set aside to provide scholarships for post secondary higher education and vocational training for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
The locations and dates for the remaining regional tribal consultations can be found at: www.doi.gov/cobell.
The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs discharges the duties of the Secretary of the Interior with the authority and direct responsibility to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with the nation’s 565 federally recognized tribes, advocate policies that support Indian self-determination, protect and preserve Indian trust assets, and administer a wide array of laws, regulations and functions relating to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes, tribal members and individual trust beneficiaries. The Assistant Secretary oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Education. For more information, visit www.indianaffairs.gov.
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/southwest-regional-tribal-leaders-address-cobell-trust-land
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
Washington, D.C.— On Thursday, September 29, 2011, the United States Department of the Interior (DOI) Solicitor Hilary Tompkins, Deputy Associate Secretary Meghan Conklin, and Deputy Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs for Policy and Economic Development Jodi Gillette, will attend the fifth regional government-to-government tribal consultation regarding the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement.
BACKGROUND ON COBELL SETTLEMENT:
The $3.4 billion Cobell settlement was approved by Congress on November 30, 2010 (Claims Resolution Act of 2010) and signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010. The Cobell Settlement will address the Federal Government’s responsibility for an historical accounting of Individual Indian trust accounts and trust mismanagement claims on behalf of more than 300,000 individual Indians. A fund of $1.5 billion will be used to compensate class members for their historical accounting, trust administration and asset mismanagement claims.
In addition, to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the "fractionation" of land interests through succeeding generations, the Settlement establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual American Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities. Up to $60 million of the $1.9 billion will be set aside to provide scholarships for post secondary higher education and vocational training for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
More information and materials can be found at www.doi.gov/cobell.
WHO: Hilary Tompkins, Solicitor, DOI Meghan Conklin, Associate Deputy Secretary, DOI Jodi Gillette, Deputy Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs for Policy and Economic Development Tribal Leaders from the Western Region and Other Regions
WHAT: Fifth Regional Tribal Consultation on Cobell Trust Land Consolidation Program
WHEN: Thursday, September 29, 2011 Registration will begin at 7:00AM MST Consultation will begin at 8:30AM – 4:00 PM MST
WHERE: Sheraton Crescent 2620 W. Dunlap Avenue Phoenix, AZ 85021 (505) 563-3805
NOTE: All media must present government-issued photo I.D. (such as a driver’s license) and valid media credentials.
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/senior-interior-and-indian-affairs-officials-attend-fifth-regional
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Department of Interior (DOI) Solicitor Hilary Tompkins, Associate Deputy Secretary Meghan Conklin, and Deputy Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs for Policy and Economic Development Jodi Gillette met with tribal officials in Phoenix, Ariz., today for the fifth of six scheduled regional government-to-government consultation meetings on the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement. The meetings with tribal leaders are a part of the Obama Administration’s commitment to re-invigorating nation-to-nation relationships with tribes.
In response to requests from tribal leaders, the Interior Department is making two additions to the consultation process for the Trust Land Consolidation Program under the Cobell Settlement. First, Interior will host a seventh regional tribal consultation session in the BIA Great Plains Region on October 26, 2011, in Rapid City, South Dakota. Second, the Department is extending the public comment period to November 1, 2011, in order to allow more time for written comments to be submitted.
“These consultation sessions are integral to the implementation of the Cobell Settlement,” said Tompkins. “I am very interested in hearing from the tribal leadership on their concerns and issues relating to a satisfactory conclusion of this landmark case.” “The consultations are progressively moving forward towards ways of implementing the settlement,” said Conklin. “Interior is pleased with the tribal input from these sessions and will continue to work closely with the tribes.”
“The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs is pleased with the process and on-going consultations on this matter,” said Gillette. “Consultations demonstrate this administration’s commitment to continue its respect for tribal sovereignty.”
Today’s participants included leaders and representatives of a number of tribes from the Western Region and other Regions.
On May 27, 2011, U.S. Senior District Judge Thomas F. Hogan granted communication between representatives of the United States and Cobell class members only in regards to the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Settlement.
BACKGROUND ON COBELL SETTLEMENT:
The $3.4 billion Cobell settlement was approved by Congress on November 30, 2010 (Claims Resolution Act of 2010) and signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010. The Cobell Settlement will address the Federal Government’s responsibility for an historical accounting of Individual Indian trust accounts and trust mismanagement claims on behalf of more than 300,000 individual Indians. A fund of $1.5 billion will be used to compensate class members for their historical accounting, trust administration and asset mismanagement claims.
In addition, to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the "fractionation" of land interests through succeeding generations, the Settlement establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual American Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities. Up to $60 million of the $1.9 billion will be set aside to provide scholarships for post secondary higher education and vocational training for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
The locations and dates for the remaining regional tribal consultations can be found at: www.doi.gov/cobell.
The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs discharges the duties of the Secretary of the Interior with the authority and direct responsibility to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with the nation’s 565 federally recognized tribes, advocate policies that support Indian self-determination, protect and preserve Indian trust assets, and administer a wide array of laws, regulations and functions relating to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes, tribal members and individual trust beneficiaries. The Assistant Secretary oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Education. For more information, visit www.indianaffairs.gov.
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/western-regional-tribal-leaders-address-cobell-trust-land
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
WASHINGTON – Bureau of Indian Education Director Keith O. Moore today announced that he has named Dr. Charles M. “Monty” Roessel as the associate deputy director overseeing 66 BIE-funded schools on the Navajo Nation reservation. Roessel, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, had served since 2007 as superintendent of the Rough Rock Community School, a BIE-funded, tribally operated K-12 boarding school near Chinle, Ariz., on the Nation’s reservation. His appointment is effective today.
“I am pleased to announce the selection of Dr. Charles M. Roessel as the Bureau of Indian Education’s Associate Deputy Director for its schools on the Navajo Nation reservation,” Moore said. “Dr. Roessel’s demonstrated leadership and experience in school administration, Indian education and community development make him an important addition to my team.”
“I want to thank BIE Director Moore and Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk for giving me this tremendous leadership opportunity,” Roessel said. “I am looking forward to working with them and all of the BIE management team to improve the quality of education in the BIE schools.”
The Rough Rock Community School opened in 1966 as the first American Indian-operated, and the first Navajo-operated, school within what was then the Bureau of Indian Affairs school system, now administered by the BIE. During his tenure, Roessel helped to oversee a major school replacement and improvement project funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) and carried out by the Indian Affairs Office of Facilities, Environmental and Cultural Resources (OFECR). The official opening of the replacement school and facilities was held on August 15, 2011.
Roessel started at Rough Rock in August 1998 as the director of community services where he wrote grants and developed programs for teacher recruitment and student enrollment in addition to coaching baseball and teaching photography to students. In July 2000, he became the school’s executive director, where he served until he was named superintendent in 2007.
Prior to working for the Rough Rock Community School, Roessel served from September 1997 to December 2000 as director of the Navajo Nation Round Rock Chapter AmeriCorps program where he developed partnerships to improve education and housing within the Round Rock chapter community.
Roessel also has worked as a photographer, writer and editor for various publications and projects including vice-president and editor of the Navajo Nation Today newspaper (1990-1992), which he also co-owned; managing editor of the Navajo Times Today (1985-1987); a photojournalist with the Greeley (Colo.) Tribune (1985) and a photographer/writer with the Navajo View of Navajo Life Project (1984).
In addition, he has worked since 1987 as a writer and photographer on various projects, including books on Navajo life and culture, and serving on the Visual Task Force board for the first annual gathering of minority journalists associations, including the Native American Journalists Association (NAJA), known as the UNITY conference. Starting in 2005, he has spoken publicly on the topic of Indian education, including giving testimony on school construction and conditions in BIA schools before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in 2008.
He is the recipient of several awards, including Distinguished Graduate of the Year, University of Colorado (1985); Distinguished Service to Journalism, Arizona Press Club (1988); the Carter G. Woodson Award, Best Elementary School Book, National Council for the Social Studies (1996); and the Corporation for National Service Harris Wofford Award for Service (2001).
Roessel holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Photo-Communication/Industrial Arts from the University of Northern Colorado-Greeley (1984), a Master of Arts degree in Journalism from Prescott (Ariz.) College (1995) and a Doctorate of Education degree in Educational Administration and Supervision from Arizona State University in Tempe (2007).
The Bureau of Indian Education has three associate deputy directors overseeing education line offices serving 183 BIE-funded elementary and secondary day and boarding schools and peripheral dormitories located on 64 reservations in 23 states that provide schooling for over 40,000 American Indian and Alaska Native students from the country’s federally recognized tribes. The Associate Deputy Director-Navajo is responsible for schools on the Navajo Nation reservation in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs oversees the BIE which implements federal education laws such as the No Child Left Behind Act throughout the BIE school system. The bureau also serves post secondary students through higher education scholarships and support funding to 26 tribal colleges and universities and two tribal technical colleges. It also directly operates two post secondary institutions: Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kan., and the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute in Albuquerque, N.M
For Immediate Release: October 3, 2011
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/bie-director-moore-names-dr-charles-m-roessel-associate-deputy
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
Washington, D.C.— On Thursday, October 6, 2011, Department of the Interior (DOI) Deputy Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs for Policy and Economic Development Jodi Gillette and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Director Michael Black will attend the sixth regional government-to-government tribal consultation regarding the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement. Tribal leaders from the BIA Eastern Oklahoma and Southern Plains Regions and Other Regions are scheduled to participate in the consultation session.
BACKGROUND ON COBELL SETTLEMENT:
The $3.4 billion Cobell settlement was approved by Congress on November 30, 2010 (Claims Resolution Act of 2010) and signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010. The Cobell Settlement will address the federal government’s responsibility for an historical accounting of individual Indian trust accounts and trust mismanagement claims on behalf of more than 300,000 individual American Indians. A fund of $1.5 billion will be used to compensate class members for their historical accounting, trust administration and asset mismanagement claims.
In addition, to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the "fractionation" of land interests through successive generations, the Settlement establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual American Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided trust land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities. Up to $60 million of the $1.9 billion will be set aside to provide scholarships for post secondary higher education and vocational training for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
More information and materials can be found at www.doi.gov/cobell.
WHO: Jodi Gillette, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Economic Development, Indian Affairs, DOI Michael Black, Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, DOI Tribal leaders from the BIA Eastern Oklahoma and Southern Plains Regions and Other Regions
WHAT: Sixth Regional Tribal Consultation on the Cobell Trust Land Consolidation Program.
WHEN: Thursday, October 6, 2011 Registration will begin at 7:00 a.m. (CDT) Consultation will begin at 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 a.m. (CDT)
WHERE: Best Western Saddleback Inn and Conference Center 4300 Southwest Third Oklahoma City, OK 73108
NOTE: All media must present government-issued photo I.D. (such as a driver’s license) and valid media credentials.
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/deputy-assistant-secretary-gillette-and-bia-director-black-attend
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
WASHINGTON, D.C.— U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Deputy Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs for Policy and Economic Development Jodi Gillette and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Director Michael Black met with tribal leaders in Oklahoma City, Okla., today in the sixth regional government-to-government tribal consultation meeting on the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement. The consultations are part of the Obama Administration’s commitment to re-invigorating nation-to-nation relationships with tribes.
“These consultation sessions have been invaluable to the Interior Department’s efforts to adhere to the obligations of the Cobell Settlement,” said Gillette. “In order to ensure that our efforts continue in the right direction, it is important that we hear from tribal leaders on their concerns and issues relating to this landmark case and our collaborative efforts.”
“I am pleased to see that we are moving forward in close collaboration with the tribes on ways of implementing the settlement,” said Black. “The tribal input from these sessions is very helpful and we will continue to work closely with the tribes.”
Today’s participants included leaders and representatives of a number of tribes from the Eastern Oklahoma and Southern Plains Regions and other BIA Regions.
On May 27, 2011, U.S. Senior District Judge Thomas F. Hogan granted communication between representatives of the United States and Cobell class members only in regards to the Trust Land Consolidation component of the Settlement.
BACKGROUND ON COBELL SETTLEMENT:
The $3.4 billion Cobell settlement was approved by Congress on November 30, 2010 (Claims Resolution Act of 2010) and signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010. The Cobell Settlement will address the federal government’s responsibility for an historical accounting of individual Indian trust accounts and trust mismanagement claims on behalf of more than 300,000 individual American Indians. A fund of $1.5 billion will be used to compensate class members for their historical accounting, trust administration and asset mismanagement claims.
In addition, to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the "fractionation" of land interests through successive generations, the Settlement establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual American Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided trust land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities. Up to $60 million of the $1.9 billion will be set aside to provide scholarships for post secondary higher education and vocational training for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
The locations and dates for the remaining regional tribal consultations can be found at: www.doi.gov/cobell.
The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs discharges the duties of the Secretary of the Interior with the authority and direct responsibility to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with the nation’s 565 federally recognized tribes, advocate policies that support Indian self-determination, protect and preserve Indian trust assets, and administer a wide array of laws, regulations and functions relating to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes, tribal members and individual trust beneficiaries. The Assistant Secretary oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Education. For more information, visit www.indianaffairs.gov.
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/indian-affairs-officials-listen-tribal-leaders-bia-eastern-oklahoma
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk today administered the oath of office to James C. Redman at his inauguration as Haskell Indian Nations University’s (HINU) sixth president. The ceremony took place today on the Haskell campus in Lawrence, Kan., where Echo Hawk and Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) Director Keith Moore were joined by local dignitaries, tribal leaders, students, staff, faculty and fellow regional academic community members.
“I am pleased to be at Haskell to swear in James Redman as Haskell Indian Nations University’s sixth president,” Echo Hawk said. “He understands that Haskell is a proud institution with a long history of serving Indian Country. His leadership will ensure that Haskell continues to progress in its mission in the 21st century."
“Chris Redman is a proven leader and dedicated public servant,” Moore said. “His commitment to Haskell, its students, staff and faculty, and to American Indian higher education, is unquestioned. Today signifies that a solid foundation is being built at Haskell.”
Redman, an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation in Oklahoma, was an education specialist with the BIE who had served as Haskell’s acting president in times of need. His appointment to the position became effective on July 3, 2011. The swearing-in ceremony was held today at the start of the 2011 Haskell Homecoming celebration.
“I am honored to be sworn in by Assistant Secretary Echo Hawk and to have BIE Director Moore at Haskell,” said Redman. “They are as committed as I am to Haskell’s future and to continuing the positive changes they have made for the benefit of our students.”
The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs oversees the Bureau of Indian Education which operates the federal school system for American Indian and Alaska Native children from the nation’s 565 federally recognized tribes. The BIE implements federal education laws and provides funding to 183 elementary and secondary day and boarding schools and peripheral dormitories located on 63 reservations in 23 states and serving approximately 41,000 students. The BIE also serves post secondary students through higher education scholarships and support funding to 27 tribal colleges and universities and two tribal technical colleges. In addition to HINU, the BIE also directly operates the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute in Albuquerque, N.M.
Haskell Indian Nations University has served the educational needs of American Indian and Alaska Native students for well over a century. Opened on September 1, 1884 as the United States Industrial Training School with a focus on agricultural education in grades one through five, the school was known as Haskell Institute throughout Indian Country until 1970 when it was transformed into a two-year higher education institution and renamed Haskell Indian Junior College. In 1993, the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs approved changing the school’s name to its current form.
Haskell has grown from its original 22 students in 1884 to an average enrollment today of over 1,000 students each semester from federally recognized tribes across the U.S. It offers baccalaureate programs in elementary teacher education, American Indian studies, business administration and environmental science, and integrates American Indian/Alaska Native culture into all of its curricula. Students may transfer to another baccalaureate degree-granting institution or go directly into the workforce. For more information, visit www.haskell.edu.
For Immediate Release: October 7, 2011
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/echo-hawk-swears-james-c-redman-haskells-sixth-president
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk today announced that the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development (IEED) has awarded approximately $2.0 million in economic development technical assistance grants to 30 federally recognized tribes. The funding was provided by the IEED’s Native American Business Development Institute (NABDI) grant program to foster economic activity and create jobs within tribal communities.
“Providing funding for tribes to conduct the research necessary for developing their economic and business plans is a vital and necessary part of Indian Affairs’ mission,” Echo Hawk said. “The funds provided by the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development’s Native American Business Development Institute technical assistance grant program are the seeds that, if carefully tended, will help Indian Country’s economy to bloom and grow. I am very pleased to announce these grants to tribes who are seeking to improve their local economic and employment conditions.”
The NABDI grants will allow recipients to hire consultants to perform feasibility studies of tribal economic development opportunities or long-term, strategic, reservation-wide economic development plans. Consultants may include universities and colleges, private consulting firms, non-academic/non-profit entities, or others. The feasibility studies may concern the viability of an economic development project or business, or the practicality of a technology a tribe may choose to pursue.
In response to a solicitation of proposals the IEED published in the Federal Register on July 13, 2011, the NADBI grant program received 79 tribal funding requests totaling approximately $7.8 million. Last month, the program awarded almost $2.0 million in grants for 46 projects from 30 tribes. The list of those grantees is attached.
The IEED established the Institute in 2007 and the NADBI grant program shortly thereafter. This is an annual program and the IEED uses a competitive evaluation process to select several proposed projects to receive an award. The program is funded under the non-recurring appropriation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) budget and is based on available funds.
The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs oversees the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development, whose mission is to foster stronger American Indian and Alaska Native communities by helping federally recognized tribes with employment and workforce training programs; developing their renewable and non-renewable energy and mineral resources; and increasing access to capital for tribal and individual American Indian- and Alaska Native-owned businesses. For more information about IEED programs and services, visit the Indian Affairs website at http://www.indianaffairs.gov/WhoWeAre/AS-IA/IEED/index.htm.
Indian Affairs Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development List of Economic Development Technical Assistance Grantees September 2011
ARIZONA
Hualapai Indian Tribe
Grant Award: $75,000 Purpose: For a feasibility study on the expansion or replacement of the only local grocery store.
Quechan Tribe of the Fort Yuma Indian Reservation
Grant Award: $26,000
Purpose: For a market feasibility study on the development of a local grocery store. Navajo Nation Grant Award: $150,000 Purpose: For ten projects that include feasibility studies on developing a variety of on-reservation businesses, and market assessment and planning to support the development of a tribal solar energy manufacturing facility and a tribal commercial scale bio-fuels facility.
Yavapai-Prescott Tribe
Grant Award: $39,997
Purpose: To develop the Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe Telecommunication Infrastructure Feasibility Project.
CALIFORNIA
Chemehuevi Indian Tribe
Grant Award: $55,000
Purpose: For a strategic plan for agricultural economic development.
Karuk Tribe
Grant Award: $43,838
Purpose: For a tribe-wide economic development plan.
Santa Rosa Indian Community
Grant Award: $110,000
Purpose: For feasibility studies on the development of a commercial retail center and for a biomass/ renewable energy project.
Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians
Grant Award: $50,000
Purpose: For a market analysis on and an applicable business plan for a travel plaza.
COLORADO
Ute Mountain Tribe
Grant Award: $30,000
Purpose: To prepare a master plan for the expansion and development of on-reservation tribal enterprises.
KANSAS
Kickapoo Tribe of Indians
Grant Award: $57,900
Purpose: For a comprehensive economic development plan.
MAINE
Penobscot Tribe
Grant Award: $69,576
Purpose: For a feasibility study for an alternative energy-related business.
MICHIGAN
Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians
Grant Award: 22,900
Purpose: For a feasibility analysis and impact study on agricultural economic development initiatives.
MINNESOTA
Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians
Grant Award: $15,000
Purpose: For a feasibility study on the merits of starting a vocational education program in the area of construction and carpentry technology.
MONTANA
Crow Tribe
Grant Award: $50,000
Purpose: For a reservation-wide economic development strategy focused on tourism.
Northern Cheyenne Tribe
Grant Award: $55,043
Purpose: For a feasibility study on a motel/lodging business in conjunction with local mining operations. NEVADA Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribes Grant Award: $59,500 Purpose: For a reservation-wide economic development plan with an emphasis on the U.S. Highway 96 commercial district.
Wells Indian Colony Band Council, Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians
Grant Award: $69,850
Purpose: For an economic development plan that includes an incubator feasibility study, a land use study and a tribally chartered economic development enterprise.
NEW YORK
Shinnecock Indian Nation Grant Award: $49,500
Purpose: For feasibility studies on the development of a gas station/convenience store business and on long-term economic development initiatives.
NORTH DAKOTA
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North and South Dakota
Grant Award: $100,000
Purpose: For feasibility studies on small business development on the Standing Rock Reservation and for the tribe’s telecommunications company Standing Rock Telecom.
Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation
Grant Award: $100,000
Purpose: For a feasibility/economic impact study in regards to the recent oil boom of the Bakken Shale Formation.
OKLAHOMA
Delaware Nation
Grant Award: $60,000
Purpose: For a feasibility study on a joint-venture solar module manufacturing business.
OREGON
Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation
Grant Award: $35,000
Purpose: To develop and implement a comprehensive strategic economic plan.
Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Indians
Grant Award: $74,154
Purpose: For a comprehensive economic development strategy.
SOUTH DAKOTA
Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation
Grant Award: $175,000
Purpose: To establish baseline analysis on creating Tribal Intellectual Property (TIP) centers on tribal lands across the U.S. and for feasibility studies for projects relating to a hydrogen production facility, an electrical micro-grid business, the operation of convenience and/or retail stores and expansion of an existing tribal fish hatchery for water bottling and aquaculture.
UTAH
Indian Peaks Band, Paiute Indian Tribe
Grant Award: $50,000
Purpose: For an economic feasibility study for an RV park/campground.
WASHINGTON
Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation
Grant Award: $75,672
Purpose: To develop feasibility studies to update the tribe’s current strategic plan and for the development of an indoor water park.
Port Gamble Indian Community
Grant Award: $121,442
Purpose: For two projects that include developing a strategic long-term economic development plan and a local market study of the Noo-Kayet Development Corporation.
Quileute Tribe
Grant Award: $81,330
Purpose: For feasibility studies on the development of a conference center facility in conjunction with the existing Ocean Side Resort and on the renovation and expansion of services related to the tribe’s marina.
Swinomish Indians of the Swinomish Reservation
Grant Award: $45,500
Purpose: For a tribal economic zone market analysis study.
WISCONSIN
Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
Grant Award: $50,000
Purpose: For feasibility studies on the redevelopment and reuse of an old casino site and facilities
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/assistant-secretary-echo-hawk-announces-20-million-economic
Indian Affairs - Office of Public Affairs
WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk issued the following statement today on the passing of Elouise Cobell:
“Indian Country, as well as the entire nation, has lost a champion of human rights. Elouise Cobell battled to make our country acknowledge historical wrongdoing, and she spoke truth to power so that justice could prevail.
“She was tireless in her efforts to reach a respectable resolution to the long-standing Cobell litigation. The Claims Resolution Act of 2010, signed into law by President Obama, will forever remain a testament to her colossal feat. Through her legacy, individual Indians will have more control over their lands and many American Indian and Alaska Natives will be able to pursue higher education through the scholarship component of the settlement.
“As we take a moment to reflect upon the life of Elouise Cobell, I think of how she embodies what our nation is all about—the quest for justice and opportunity for all. She will be sorely missed but never forgotten for her strength and courage. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her entire family and the Blackfeet Tribe in Montana.”
https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/assistant-secretary-larry-echo-hawks-statement-passing-elouise
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