Spilyay Tymoo
Coyote News, est. 1976
October 28, 2015
Vol. 40, No. 22
October – Anwicht’ash – Fall - Tiyam
School district seeks Impact Aid input
Is there a program you feel the
Jefferson County School District
509-J should consider, in order to
better serve tribal member stu-
dents? Or is there a program that
you see as not necessary?
The district is asking for input
on questions such as these from
parents and other interested resi-
dents of the reservation.
There are a number of ways you
can share your thoughts with the
district board members and the su-
perintendent.
The board is scheduled to host
the Impact Aid hearing in Warm
Springs this Wednesday evening,
Oct. 28. This meeting had been
scheduled for Monday of this week,
but was delayed due to the recent
losses in the community.
Impact Aid survey
Another way to comment on
Impact Aid is to visit the school dis-
trict website, and fill out the survey
form. You can find the survey by
going to jcsd.k12.or.us
The Impact Aid survey asks for
input on these education topics: un-
met service needs, unnecessary pro-
grams, positive programs, and other
comments.
The Impact Aid survey is new
this year, as an added way for tribal
members to share their thoughts
with the district board, said 509-J
superintendent Rick Molitor.
The district is asking for survey
comments to be submitted by De-
cember 9. Some people had already
submitted comments as of earlier
this week, Molitor said.
Impact Aid is federal funding that
replaces money school districts does
not collect from tax-exempt prop-
erty, such as the reservation.
Payment varies
The Impact Aid funding to 509-
J varies from year to year. Last year,
Winning Day
at the Cowdeo
I saiah Florendo had a winning
day at the Cowdeo: He won
four prize buckles, and the All
Around Cowdeo Saddle.
The Jefferson County Fair
Complex hosted the Forty-Sev-
enth Annual Cowdeo this month
at the fairgrounds rodeo arena.
Young cowboys and cowgirls
from around the Northwest
arrived for the competitions.
Isaiah won the Calf Riding,
Goat Un-Decorating and the
Horseless Roping. For winning
these events, he won the All
Around Buckle and the Saddle.
He rode his horse Wup-Sin-
Nee in the Cowdeo.
Isaiah says one of his favor-
ite Cowdeo events was the Goat
Un-Decorating, where the con-
testants ride from the start line
toward the goat, get off the
horse, and untie a ribbon from
the goat’s tail. Fastest time wins.
Isaiah, 8, is a student at the
Warm Springs Eagle Academy.
He and his family live on a
ranch at Charley Canyon.
He’s learned riding and ro-
deo skills from elders in his fam-
ily, starting from his great-grand-
father. Isaiah says one day wants
to be in the cowboy business.
Meanwhile, he’s practicing and
looking forward to a new ro-
deo season in the spring.
See 509-J on page 7
ECR WSS
Postal Patron
U.S. Postage
PRSRT STD
Warm Springs, OR 97761
Art Show
opening
The Museum at Warm
Springs is celebrating the
Twenty-Second Annual
Tribal Member Art Show,
opening this Thursday, Oct.
29 at 5:30 p.m.
Before the show open-
ing, the musical enterprise
OneBeat will host a student
workshop at the museum,
starting at 3:30 p.m. All are
welcome.
OneBeat will be at the
museum again on Friday
afternoon, Oct. 30, at the
same time.
Ten going to Indian
National Finals Rodeo
Jenna Johnson is the highest quali-
fier in Ladies Breakaway Roping at
this year’s Indian National Finals Ro-
deo.
She won the 2015 INFR Tour
in Ladies Breakaway, judged this
year by money won on the Tour.
Jenna is top among the 32 overall
qualifiers. She traveled to the Tour
rodeos with boyfriend Brooks
Dahozy, who qualifies near the top
in Team Roping.
Another eight people from Warm
Springs will be competing at the
2015 Indian National Finals Rodeo,
coming up Nov. 3-7 in Las Vegas:
Qualifying in Team Roping are
Mike Holyan and Justin Tom; and
Ty and Casey Green.
Casey Green and Mike Holyan
also qualified in Calf Roping. Lee
Tom will be competing in the Se-
nior Team Roping.
Clint Bruised Head will compete
in the Steer Wresting; and Sammy
Bruised in Ladies Breakaway. Their
daughter JB Bruised Head will make
her first appearance at the INFR
competition in the Junior Barrels
(stor y on page 5).
UAV program focus for
new manager at Ventures
D.McMechan/Spilyay
Isaiah with four trophy buckles and All-Around Saddle.
Talk scheduled on cannabis initiative
KWSO 91.9 FM will host a talk
show with individuals who have
been studying the economic poten-
tial of cannabis for the Confeder-
ated Tribes. The show is currently
set for noon this Friday, Oct. 30.
The financial and jobs potential
of the still-new cannabis industry
are the driving force behind the in-
terest in the tribal cannabis project.
According to research so far, a
cannabis growing operation on the
reservation would generate more
revenue than the other tribal enter-
prises combined. A conservative
estimate sees $13 million in revenue
the district received $2.16 mil-
lion in Impact Aid; the year be-
fore, the payment was $1.58 mil-
lion; and the year before the pay-
ment was $2.9 million. So the
average over the most recent
three years has been $2.25 mil-
lion.
For comparison, property
taxes for the district general fund
are about $3.8 million. This does
not include taxes levied for con-
struction projects, such as the
Warm Springs Eagle Academy,
the $20-million cost of which the
tribes and district are sharing.
PO Box 489
Warm Springs, OR 97761
the first year of operation.
Warm Springs Ventures and
Tribal Council first began discuss-
ing this project in 2014, after the
state voted to legalize cannabis. A
team appointed by Council devel-
oped a report on the potential eco-
nomic benefit to the tribes of a
cannabis growing operation.
The idea is for the tribes to own,
operate, regulate and manage a can-
nabis cultivation and extraction fa-
cility. The product would be for re-
tail sales off the reservation.
The Warm Springs Ventures team
visited with business and agriculture
staff of Strainwise, in Colorado.
They talked with a lending com-
pany that is interested in work-
ing with the tribes and Strainwise
on a development project.
Over the course of the year,
Ventures and the exploratory
team met with federal and state
officials regarding the legality of
the idea. They found the tribes
can legally own and operate a
cannabis growing facility on the
reservation, and have access to
the same markets as off-reser-
vation growers.
The incidence and size of wild
fires in the West are growing. And
fire agencies are looking for new
technology to address the problem.
Unmanned aerial systems (UAS),
drones, hold great potential in the
future of fire fighting.
The applications are many, from
day and night surveillance, to the
actual dropping of water and other
fire retardants. The Confederated
Tribes are now in a position to make
the most of this opportunity.
Warm Springs Ventures and
Tribal Council worked to have the
reservation designated by the Fed-
eral Aviation Administration as an
unmanned aerial systems test area.
The reservation is one of three
approved test areas in the state.
Three sites on the reservation are
now designated for UAS testing.
The next step in developing this
potential is to work with companies
and agencies, and bring them to
Warm Springs. This is an employ-
ment and financial opportunity for
the tribes.
To make it happen, Aurolyn
Stwyer joined Ventures as the en-
terprise business development and
marketing manager, focusing mainly
on the UAS program.
The idea, Aurolyn says, is to make
the reservation a Center for Excel-
lence in the unmanned aerial sys-
tem industry. Part of the plan is to
develop a UAS training center at
Kah-Nee-Ta.
Partnering with the tribes is
SOAR Oregon, an economic devel-
opment group focusing on the UAS
industry in the state.
Another partner is VDOS, the
nation’s first FAA authorized UAS
inspection company. Another inter-
ested party is Sandia Laboratories,
a Lockheed Martin company work-
ing in national security technology.
Central Oregon Community Col-
lege is partnering with the tribes.
COCC has a degree program in the
UAS field. Any tribal member in-
terested in this program should con-
tact the Warm Springs Ventures of-
fice.
The Cascade Chapter of Asso-
ciation for Unmanned Aerial Ve-
hicle Systems International (AUVSI)
is another resource for the tribes.
Aurolyn came on board at Ven-
tures at a good time, as AUVSI
hosted a UAS conference last week
at Newport.
See VENTURES on page 3