iHilypyJTyinppJ 5pHngsOhegon Feb. 22, 2001
KWSO
hosts
summit
Mary Sando-F.mhoulah, Station
Manager of KW SO announced that
The Confederated Tribes of Warm
Springs and the radio station will
host the first annual Inter-Tribal
Native Radio Summit. The confer
ence will run from June 3"1 through
the 7"" at Kahn-Nce-Ta Resort.
Station managers, producers, en
gineers, program directors, and staff
from Native radio stations around
the country will share thoughts on
ways to better serve their commu
nities, utilize new technologies, and
reach urban Native Americans not
served by the predominantly rural
radio stations. Organizer Peggy
Derryhill anticipates approximately
one hundred and thirty will attend.
Starr to
perform
Absenteeism looming over futures
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Warm Springs residents have a
treat in store Monday evening.
Arigon Starr, popular Native Ameri
can singing artist will be perform
ing at 7 pm at the Community
Wellness Center. KWSO plays
Starr's music regularly. Two of her
CDs are Wind Up and Meet the Diva.
Based in Los Angeles, Starr is cur
rently touring the region and, after
talking to contacts at Warm Springs,
decided to include the reservation in
her itinerary. Tickets will be $3 at
the door.
Three good men sat together last
Thursday and described their con
cern for the children of the Jefferson
County schools and of the Warm
Springs community in particular.
The problem is not an esoteric learn
ing disability but a situation decep
tive in its simplicity - absenteeism,
a multi-tentacled monster, born of
many issues and guaranteed to fos
ter future problems.
Dutch David and Foster Kalama,
both Native American Liasons, and
Jefferson County Middle School
Principal Pat Kelly described the
frustrations they experience as well
as their pride in the improvements
they have witnessed in the last few
years improvements they believe
attributable to the team efforts of the
entire school community:
Kelly, referring to both absentees
and children who are physically
present but unable to focus due to
problems, presents the issue starkly.
"Our biggest fear is that kids who
are not school-ready, who are not
supported by parents will be left
way, way, behind."
When David and Kalama talk to
students or visit their homes they
discover causes ranging from philo
sophical issues such as the value of
education to the harsh reality of al
coholism and violent homes.
Kalama, a six year veteran of the sys
tem, spends half his time at the high
school and half at the middle school.
His face takes on the appearance of
a ravaged war-victim as he recounts
the horror stories that tumble from
the lips of children forced to grow
up too soon. "It breaks my heart,"
says the tough-looking, former pro
bation officer.
He describes one student who
recently broke down in his office.
She told of nights lying awake lis
tening to her parents who were
drinking and her fears for them
when they left to buy more alcohol
- fears they would never return.
Another recounts tales of violence.
A third misses school because, at 14,
she has become the "mother" for her!
younger sisters and brothers.
Sometimes the solution can be as
easy as a ride to school. One puz
zling case was finally solved when a
student admitted to Kalama that the
lack of a family clothes drier in the
winter weather was the reason for
her absences. Another easily solved
problem - Kalama brought the wet
clothes to his house to dry.
Wise and capable as they are,
Kalama and colleagues cannot
"solve" all these problems. After
family visits and attempts at inter
vention, all they can offer is them
selves - as advisors, friends, discipli
narians, role models - all elements
missing from the lives of these chil
dren. Responsibility for one's actions
is a theme the three educators em
phasize. "You own your future," "
is one of Kalama's favorite sayings.
Well aware of the overwhelming cir
cumstances facing each child, they
still insist that each student acknowl
edges the consequences of his own
actions. Ironically, the three have to
educate parents as well as children.
David says, "We have to let parents
know that attendance is a big issue.
If you're not here at school, you're
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Native American Liason Buctch David watches over off ten bus loads of Warm Springs students
Truancy board hopes to keep kids in class
Frustrated with high absenteeism, the
Jefferson County schools are getting tough on
truancy - not to wield their clout, but to try to
save some students they desperately fear will
fall through the system.
A man who deals with this problem daily
is Butch David, Native American Liaison at
Jefferson County Middle School. "Fifteen years
ago, when I attended the Madras schools,
people took pride in getting their kids to
school. I don't see this pride today." Among
other responsibilities, David is charged with
tracking and helping students whose absentee
ism is problematic Fortunately, David does not
face this task alone. The staff with whom he
works as well as the community at large, is
determined to find new methods to address the
situation.
- The Jefferson County Truancy Board is the
latest tool- adopted to confront (absenteeism .
without suspension or judicial intervention.
The Jefferson County schools are the first in
Oregon to adopt this device which has been
standard for some time in all .Washington
school districts. Before its adoption the idea
, was discussed by the schools, representatives
of the judicial system, the Warm Springs Tribal
Council, parents and other community mem-'
bers. .
The resulting board is comprised of a pool
of 1 5 parent volunteers who have gone through
intensive training in information gathering, me
diation, and privacy issues. The sitting board
will have five members and meet only when a
severe truancy case is referred to it.
Typically, a student with recurring absences
will be referred to David or his colleague, Fos
ter Kalama, who will try to ascertain the cause
of the absences. If the problem persists, they
contact the parents and often make home vis
its to find a way to get the student to school.
Formerly if these efforts failed and a stu
dent continued to be absent an inordinate
amount of time, suspension was the only op-,
, tion left die schools. Often the student fell '
through the cracks and never returned. How
ever, with the Truancy Board now in place, the
next step will be to notify the student and par
ents of the option to appear before the board
or have their case be referred to court.
If the choice is a board appearance, the stu
dent and parent will come before the panel
which will attempt to identify the source of
the problem and utilize whatever community
or tribal resources best address it. The board
can propose an in-school opportunity contrac
tually agreed to by board, ' student and parent
or remand the case to court. If the decision of
the board is to allow the student to stay in
school, David and Kalama will manage, the case.
The board recently heard its first case and to
date, the results have been encouraging. The stu
dent is in school and he and his family are work
ing with David to break a pattern of truancy in
place since elementary school.
David and his colleagues hope that the Tru
ancy Board is a device that does not have to be
frequently implemented. On the contrary, he
hopes-that parents will recognize the importance
of education and insure .that learning is a val
ued part of family life. On the other hand, he
wants parents to be on notice that the Truancy
Board is a resource the schools will not hesitate
to employ in their efforts to save the children
they are mandated to serve.
not learning." They point out that J
many of these children have not wit
nessed responsibility in the home, '
so it is no surprise they have not I
incorporated the value themselves.
According to Kelly one of their
biggest challenges is to instill respon-1
sibility in parents. "I need you to be
an adult. When you impede our dis
ciplinary efforts, you are preventing'
your children from being respon-'
sible for themselves. We have expec
tations for these children. Because
we love them, we want them to be
successful. We need your help."
On a positive note, the three edu
cators are quick to point to the im
provements they have seen in the last
few years. "Everybody's on the same
page," says Kalama. If the student
in question is a Native American,
"teachers and the principal will
come to us and ask for our help. I '
don't see prejudices or racism like
in the past. Teachers are simply
working hard to get children edu
cated." ''
David is also encouraged. He sees
children who have left his domain,
the middle school, coming back to
visit teachers and coaches. He at
tributes an attitude change in part
to the number of Native American
coaches and staff members at the
school, each a role model in his own
way. "We are no longer here to baby
sit. It looks like a school should
look. We hardly ever used to see
(Native American) parents come in.
Now they feel more welcome, they
participate. You see them sitting in
the commons at sports events." This
sort of parent involvement spills over
into attitudes, and absenteeism
drops.
Both David and Kalama attribute
improvement to Kelly's four years
of leadership and hiring practices.
"Pat's done a lot to change attitudes
of both students and faculty. Lead
ership makes a school better, and
he'll do anything in his power to
help our Native American stu
dents." Kelly returns the praise, "I give a
lot of credit to Foster and Butch. I
want them to blast away at me if
they need to. . . to tell me of their con
cerns. I respect that kind of commu
nication. We have a team approach.'
An interesting side-note to the
absenteeism issue is a problem Kelly
has with state authorities. With one
of the most culturally diverse school
populations in the state, Kelly balks
at the state's reluctance to acknowl
edge the celebrations of other cul
tures as legitimate reasons for ab
sences. Often his students feel com
pelled to be absent for funerajs, root
gatherings or Mexican holidays. He
empathizes with the plight of stu-,
dents who try to be participating
members of two cultures, yet receive
a negative mark on their records. He
is also concerned professionally as
the resulting absenteeism gives the
Jefferson County schools a lower
rating on the state-wide school "re
port card". Kelly continues to ad
dress this issue and has not ruled out
a possible civil rights suit against the
state. ,
The reality remains, however,
that most absenteeism is for other
reasons and constitutes one of the
biggest threats to student potential.
Kalama speaks for the three when
he exclaims, "I love these kids - they
are our future leaders!" Fortunately
for the children of Jefferson County,
Kalama, David and Kelly are not tru
ants. They show up at school every
day, determined to make a difference
in the lives of the children they cher
ish. , . i
Samuel Lawrence Wolfe and
Elizabeth Ardis Smith, both of
Warm Springs will be married on
Tuesday, March 13, 2001.
Mr. Wolfe, 25, is the son of
Flossie Wolfe of Warm Springs and
the late James Wolfe. He is a 1993
graduate o Madras High School and
is currendy employed as a detective
with the Warm Springs Police De
partment. He has two children, De
von (4) and Kalan (2) Wolfe.
Miss Smith, 23, is the daughter
of Eldred Smith, Sr. of Warm
Springs and Lani and Rodney
Hollingsworth of Culver, Oregon.
She is the Program DirectorOpera
tions Manager at KWSO Radio Sta
tion. She also has two children,
Aaron (1 1) and Jariah (5) Thomp
son. The couple will be married on
Elizabeth's birthday, March 13, at
4:30 at the Warm Springs Presbyte
rian Church. A brief reception will
follow at the Agency Longhouse.
Government Island rock to be put to use
The Tribal Council has ap
proved an environmental assess
ment for mining as much as
600,000 cubic yards of aggregate
from Government Island over
the next several years.
Sales of the aggregate for
highway projects could substan
tially contribute to tribal in
come as well as help prepare the
island for future development.
On a smaller level, however,
rock on the island already has
been put to a generous use.
4 p. ' to -, ,
CASCADE LOCKS - A group
of high school students has con
structed a raised flower bed from
rock on Government Island with
permission of the tribes.
The project required permission
of the Warm Springs Tribal Coun
cil to take rock from the tribes' trust
property on the Columbia River.
Kay Strong, the Cascade Locks
High School teacher whose senior
students worked on the flower bed,
said the light gray rock matches an
other wall built near the school.
Strong said she was grateful for
the quick response to the request,
which was sent through tribal realty
officer Everett Part..
"He was just so immediate with
his response," said Strong. "He just
called back in a day or two and told
us the Tribal Council gave kids per
mission to enter. It was just so nice
he did that so timely."
Come spring there will be flow
ers in the space, which surrounds a
reader board for the high school.
Shirelle Woosley, Joy Corbin and
Jered Cramblctt chose the project,
one of four that students perform
over the course of the school year.
At the beginning of the year stu
dents work on a home project, pro
gressing to school, community and
personal projects.
"The intent is that they move
from being a child in a school, to
being a citizen in the community,"
said Strong.
Election set
The Tribal Council set an
Adoption Election for Tuesday,
May 22, 2001. If you and or your
child will be applying for Adop
tion into the tribe, you must up
date your file at Vital Statistics.
-Fill out a new application.
-Verify State Certified birth
certificate.
-Show proof of residency for
three years upon the Warm
Springs Reservation.
-Letter from employer if ap
plicant is an adult.
-Marriage Certificate.
-A filiation order if parents are
not married, especially if father
is an enrolled member.
-Certificate of Indian blood
on non-member parent.
The final day to submit ap
plications is March 16, 2001.