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Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
May 10, 2017
Jefferson County 509-J school board candidates
Position no. 3: Alyssa Macy
Position no. 2: Gary Sisk
Gary Sisk is running for
position #2 on the Jefferson
County School District 509-
J Board of Directors.
Gary has spent 31 years
working in education, mostly
in a Support Services role.
He handled facilities man-
agement, transportation and
food service.
He also spent time in class-
rooms, experiencing teacher–
student interaction and the
school environment on a daily
basis.
Gary was born in
Redmond, and spent his first
five years in Warm Springs,
his father working for the
BIA.
The family then moved to
Fort Washakie, Wyoming,
then the San Carlos Apache
reservation in Arizona.
His school years were
spent on reservations or be-
ing bussed off the reserva-
tion.
Asked about what he
would like to see in the 509-
J school district, Gary says:
“I believe the same thing
has been done for the past
200 years. I don’t feel this
has gotten the best out of
kids.”
Mr. Sisk wants to find al-
ternatives to get kids the
best education, allowing
them to pursue their
dreams.
He is an advocate for stu-
dents, and sees the need to
support them in getting
through school. (Comments
courtesy of radio inter view
Position no. 3: Tom Norton Jr.
I’m Tom Norton Jr. I’m
running for position 3 on
Jefferson County 509-J
school board. I’ve been on
the board for two terms.
I’m married to my wife
Stacy and we have three
children. They will be the
third generation of my fam-
ily to go through this school
district.
I’m a 1993 graduate of
MHS and was elected to the
school board in 2008. It’s
important to remember that
at the time of my election
this new school board had
less than 10 years combined
experience, and was replac-
ing a board that, just 4 years
prior, had over five times
that experience.
At that time our district
had just hired its fourth su-
perintendent in four years,
trying to find a replacement
for Phil Riley, who had been
a steadfast leader for 20-
plus years.
Our country was also go-
ing through one of the
worst economic downturns
since the Great Depression,
resulting in severe budget
cuts. Think what would
happen if you removed Phil
Night from Nike along with
his most senior board mem-
bers and simultaneously cut
there budget.
I think it’s fair to assume
Nike would suffer. Likewise,
our district suffered
through these times. It's
been a long 8 years since
these times and many tough,
unpopular decisions were
made, but I’m more excited
now than ever for our dis-
trict.
The tough decisions that
we as a board have made
the last 5-8 years have
brought us to a better spot,
and the momentum is
changing.
For starters our kids are
being educated in a brand
knew school in War ms
Springs. This is something
that had been talked about
for years but never accom-
plished.
With good communica-
tion and hard work we
worked together with Tribal
council to accomplish this.
I’m very proud of that ac-
complishment and the posi-
tive example it gave our kids
on what can happen when
we work together.
Our test scores are trend-
ing in a positive direction.
Our freshman high school
on track to graduate num-
bers have increased by 30
percent in the last two years.
We have a strong healthy
budget that allowed us to
bring back our career classes
at the high school.
This data and progress
can’t be ignored. It strongly
signals decisions we have
made are heading the district
in a correct direction.
Yes it has taken longer
than I would have liked, or
would have expected in a
private enterprise, but we
have finally turned the cor-
ner. Are we there yet? No,
but this momentum will
snowball in the next few
years.
Combine this positive
momentum with our in-com-
ing superintendent, who has
a proven tract record in
turning schools and districts
into success stories, and it
explains why I seek your
vote to continue on school
board.
At no point in my prior
time on the board have I
been this excited about
what’s to come for this dis-
trict and confident it’s going
to happen. It already is hap-
pening.
I respectfully ask for
your vote in hopes of see-
ing this through in the next
four years.
Please vote Tom Norton
Jr. for position 3 Jefferson
county 509-J school board
Thank you.
Tom Norton Jr.
Car seat observations in W.S.
In preparing for a new car
seat grant, Warm Springs
Community Health is collect-
ing data on car seat use in the
local community.
Don’t miss your chance to
participate at an observation
site, and earn a $5 voucher
for the Warm Springs Painted
Pony Espresso.
Bring your kids in their car
seat exactly as they would be
strapped in on any other day.
Here are the upcoming ob-
servations times and places:
Thursday, May 11 at 7:50
a.m. at the Warm Springs
Academy. First 40 vehicles.
May 16 at IHS at 8 a.m.
First 20 vehicles.
May 18 at 7:30 a.m. at the
ECE daycare entrance: first
40 vehicles.
May 23 at the ECE Head
Start entrance, 7:30 a.m.: first
40 vehicles.
May 24 at the War m
Springs Academy at 7:50 a.m.:
Language Bowl:
(Continued from page 1)
A first-place award went to
the AIS #1 team: Alina
Smith, Kaiwin Clements,
Keeyana Yellowman and
coach Merle Kirk. Second
place went to Ashumnashu
Spilyayua: Marissa Andy,
Vanessa Andy, Shannon
first 15 vehicles.
May 25 at ECE, 7:20 a.m.
First 15 vehicles.
May 26 at HIS, 7:20 a.m.:
First 15 vehicles.
One $5 voucher per one
driver per day. All children
must be under the age of 12
and in the vehicle with you.
For more information contact
Community Health at 541-
553-2460.
three options for learners
Hudson, Violet Heath and
coach Dallas Winishut. And
third to The Nukwshals:
Katrina Greene, Adrianna
Switzler, Thyreicia Simtustus
and coach Jermayne Tuckta.
All participants have been
attending one of the classes
with the Warm Springs Acad-
emy Rise & Shine program;
or Culture and Heritage
Home Based classes, or Cul-
ture and Heritage After
School Classes.
Congratulations, and
Great Job to all the students
who took part in the Language
Bowl 2017.
My name is Alyssa
Macy and I am a candidate
for Jefferson County School
Board, Position #3.
I am excited about the
opportunity to serve our
community in this capacity,
and I am asking for your
vote.
I graduated from Ma-
dras High School in 1993.
Following graduation I left
to pursue higher education
and to develop my profes-
sional skills.
I have been blessed with
great mentors and profes-
sional opportunities that
have challenged me and
helped to develop a strong
skill set that I will bring to
the school board if elected.
These skills include the
ability to see the big picture,
strategic planning, commu-
nication, budget manage-
ment, working with diverse
communities and problem
solving.
Following are a few ar-
eas that I would like to fo-
cus on as a member of the
school board:
District wide strategic
planning
The 2014 Strategic Plan
as it stands is a visionary
document that contains
strong statements about
where the district would like
to see itself in the future.
It is critical to map a
course that lays out the
steps that will be taken to
turn this vision into a real-
ity. This must include
benchmarks, when and how
progress will be evaluated,
and alignment with annual
budgets.
Equity
It is important to recog-
nize that some of our stu-
dents enter into the school
system academically behind
their peers.
To ensure that these stu-
dents succeed, we must en-
sure that adequate resources
are made available to them
so that they can catch up
and close that achievement
gap.
As a board member, I
will work to ensure that we
are investing resources in
staff and activities that will
close the achievement gap.
Wise fiscal management
There are increasing un-
knowns at the state and fed-
eral levels on education
funding. Wise fiscal man-
agement will be key to en-
suring that the district has
the necessary resources to
meet its mission.
By planning and evalua-
tion, the board will be bet-
ter poised to make financial
decisions based on targeted
outcomes.
In addition to managing
resources wisely, I believe
that being transparent in the
process is key to establish-
ing and maintaining trust
with stakeholders.
Background
• Madras High School
graduate Class of 1993
• B.S. Justice Studies, Ari-
zona State University, 2000
• Masters of Public
Policy, University of Minne-
sota (finalizing)
• 40 under 40 Award, Na-
tional Center for American
Indian Enterprise Develop-
ment, 2014
• Upper Midwest Hu-
man Rights Fellow, 2007
• Mark O. Hatfield Fel-
low,
Congresswoman
Darlene Hooley, 2000
Community Service
• Advisor, Warm Springs
Youth Council
• Member, Oregon Com-
munity Foundation, Central
Oregon Leadership Council
• Co-Chair, Affiliated
Tribes of NW Indians In-
ternational Affairs Commit-
tee
• Board of Regents, Mu-
seum at Warm Springs
• Oregon Arts Commis-
sioner
Warm Springs Red Cross training Thursday
There is a Warm Springs
Red Cross training scheduled
for this Thursday evening,
May 11, starting at 5:30 p.m.
at the Family Resource Cen-
ter.
Warm Springs currently
relies on outside Red Cross
assistance, during fire season
for instance.
A goal is to have a local
Red Cross team, said Rose
Mary Alarcon, disability co-
ordinator with the Confeder-
ated Tribes of Warm Springs.
Rose Mary, know to many
as Mushy, is helping organize
the Warm Springs Red Cross
project.
The need for the project
is clear: Last summer, dur-
ing fire season, there was a
Red Cross shelter for several
weeks in Warm Springs.
This service could best be
provided by a local team.
There are about five
people involved so far, and
about 10 would be needed for
a full team, Rose Mary said.
Community Health plans Health Fair 2017
The Confederated Tribes
and Health and Human Ser-
vices will host the annual Pi-
Ume-Sha Health Fair in
June.
The theme this year is
‘Water Is Life.’ The health
fair will be on June 21, the
Wednesday before Pi-Ume-
Sha, at the community cen-
ter.
The objectives of the fair
are to increase health aware-
ness by providing health
screenings, activities, materi-
als, demonstrations and infor-
mation; increase awareness
of local, state and tribal
health services and resources;
and to motivate participants
to make positive health be-
havior changes.
For additional information
contact Katie Russell at
Community Health at the
clinic, 5410553-1196. Or
email:
katie.russell@wstribes.org
Or call Edmund Francis
at Community Health Ser-
vices, 541-553-2460. Or
email:
edmund.francis@wstribes.org
Drones conference re-set to Sept.
Eagle Tech Systems, a sub-
sidiary of Warm Springs Ven-
tures, has announced the
post-ponement of the
Drones and Public Safety
Conference.
The conference had been
set for later this month. In-
stead, the event has been
moved to September.
This will allow coordina-
tion with the Association of
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
System International at Kah-
Nee-Ta High Desert Resort
and Spa.
To learn more, please con-
tact Aurolyn Stwyer, Ventures
business development and
marketing manager, 541-541-
553-3565. Or email:
aurolyn.stwyer@wstribes.org
The website is wsuas.com
Around Indian Country
Evidence of early human activity in Calif.
Humans were living in
California some 130,000
years ago, according to a
new study.
An analysis of the
bones and teeth of a
mastodon showed they
were manipulated by hu-
mans, researchers recently
reported. The claim pushes
back the presence of the
first Americans by more than
100,000 years.
“The evidence we found
at this site indicates that
some hominin species was
living in North America
115,000 years earlier than
previously thought,” said
Judy Gradwohl, the presi-
dent and CEO of the San
Diego Natural History
Museum.