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OFF PAGE ONE
East Oregonian
Tuesday, August 29, 2017
TRCI: More than 135 people attend
DAY 1: School returns
Continued from 1A
Once all of the students
were successfully sent
home and Petersen had
conducted a quick staff
meeting, she said she was
anxious to begin applying
the curriculum that staff
had been working to put
together to make each one
of the school year’s days
count.
Petersen’s background
is in English as a second
language and literacy
development, so getting
students
reading
and
writing is a major passion
for her. She said the staff’s
goal is to get 100 percent of
students reading at grade
level by the end of the year.
To do that she has been
working with teachers on
“going deeper” in imple-
menting best practices,
and has created a small but
well-stocked “instructional
resource library” adjacent
to her offi ce where teachers
can check out the array of
literature on education that
she has built up over the
completely.”
During the grand entry,
inmates lined up and stepped
in rhythm to the sound of
the pulsing drum. Some
dressed in full regalia while
others remained in their blue
TRCI-issued T-shirts and
shorts.
Trish Jordan, a member
of the Creek Tribe from
Oklahoma, serves as director
of Red Lodge Transition
Services and has spent 17
years as a religious services
volunteer for the Oregon
Department of Corrections.
She and fellow volunteers
were hard at work Saturday
morning preparing lunch,
which included fry bread
and traditional First Foods
such as salmon, venison and
huckleberries.
The powwow is a celebra-
tion of life, Jordan said, and
offers a chance for American
Indian prisoners to reunite
with their families and recon-
nect with their culture.
“It’s important for these
men to have that identity of
who they are,” Jordan said.
“They can hopefully carry that
on outside this institution.”
American Indians make
up an estimated 1.8 percent
of Oregon’s population, yet
account for approximately 6
percent of the state’s prison
inmates, Jordan said.
“The disparity numbers
are huge for Native Amer-
icans. It’s hard to fi nd a
native family that hasn’t
gone through this,” she said.
“We recognize the potential
in people. We want to give
them hope, that their life can
be different.”
This
year’s
TRCI
powwow also received
a $1,500 grant from the
Confederated Tribes of
Siletz Indians, which went
toward supplies for making
homemade gifts and art, such
as paintings, beadwork and
dream catchers.
One large backdrop
featuring bears, wolves and
eagles was made by inmate
Darren OneAll, affi liated
with the Oglala Sioux Tribe
of South Dakota. He wore
a red ribbon shirt Saturday,
which was provided by Red
Lodge Transition Services,
along with golden eagle
feathers at the ends of his
braids.
OneAll is serving at least
25 years at TRCI for charges
stemming from a kidnapping
and sexual assault case.
His earliest release date has
tentatively been set for 2033.
Hosting a powwow at the
prison allows the inmates
to be who they really are,
OneAll said.
“You can’t even imagine
how some of these guys feel
out here today,” OneAll said.
“You touch the ground, in a
reverent way. You breathe
the air, in a reverent way ...
This is a fulfi llment of who
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
TRCI inmate Darren “Two Bears” OneAll stands near his painting, displayed in an art
show at Saturday’s powwow at the Umatilla prison.
dangerous pharmaceuticals
for those suffering from
diabetes, cancer, migraines
and arthritis to name a few,”
he wrote. “Youth have the
most at stake here, as abuse
will always be a concern.
Education is important for
us to come to a rational
majority.”
years.
Petersen is also focused
on improving attendance,
increasing ESL work in
the youngest grades and
making sure all students
are being challenged at
their level, whether they are
behind their peers or ahead
of them. She calls it fi nding
their “productive struggle.”
“It’s when they’re
getting pushed, but it’s not
so hard they’re not learning
anymore,” she said.
Petersen
said
one
thing she appreciated
about Hermiston School
District is that the district
cares more about whether
something has been proven
effective than whether it is
the latest educational fad.
Schools across the
district, including Sunset
and Desert View, also
welcomed new teachers
on Monday. Petersen said
Sunset’s new teachers
include a former Sunset
student and an educator
who came to the school
from Malaysia.
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Staff photo by Kathy Aney
TRCI inmate Rick “White Eagle” Weaver uses a feather to waft the smoke of burn-
ing sage into the face of Corrections Offi cer Key on Saturday before a powwow at
the prison. The smudging ceremony uses burning herbs to purify and drive away
negative energy.
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Powwow dancers greet native Two Rivers Correctional
Institution inmates during Saturday’s powwow at the
prison in Umatilla.
our ancestors were.”
Rick Emerick, TRCI
recreation specialist, said the
prison had been trying to host
a powwow for 16 years prior
to last year’s inaugural event.
In order to attend, he said
inmates have to be actively
involved in American Indian
culture.
Participation has been
strong over two years,
Emerick said, and they intend
to carry on the powwow as
an annual gathering.
“It’s not just an activity.
It’s them getting back to their
religion,” Emerick said. “I
think, all in all, it’s gone very
well.”
POT: Other tribes have legalized sale, production
Continued from 1A
Continued from 1A
In her questionnaire,
Brigham said she voted
against Measure 91, which
legalized recreational mari-
juana in Oregon, but said
options on tribal marijuana
legalization needed to be
developed before the CTUIR
government took a position.
If the CTUIR eventually
legalizes
marijuana,
it
wouldn’t be the fi rst tribe to
do it.
The Confederated Tribes
of the Warm Springs Reser-
vation in central Oregon
grow and cultivate its own
marijuana, although it’s sold
off-site at stores in Portland
and Bend. Additionally,
several tribes in Washington
have come to agreements
with the federal government
and the state to sell marijuana
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on tribal land.
Even without the referen-
dums, tribal members will
still have choices to make on
Nov. 14. All nine positions
on the Board of Trustees will
be up for election.
———
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asierra@eastoregonian.com
or 541-966-0836.
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