Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
September 8, 2021
Page 5
Covid safety mesaures at 509-J
Like students of the other dis-
tricts of the state, students of the
Jefferson County 509-J district re-
turn to school with mask require-
ments. The same applies to teach-
ers and staff inside any school
buildings.
The district here clarifies the
rules that apply, as this week the
2021-22 school begins. Masks are
required at all times during regular
school hours and on school buses,
except for the following:
Eating or drinking. When an
individual is alone in a private room
or workspace. When practicing or
playing sports.
Performing while playing music,
or when delivering a speech or en-
gaged in theater.
Dear Tribal Elders,
I read an article some time ago about how many of your
Elders you have lost to covid. I was so saddened by that
news.
The photos that were included in the paper just struck
me, and I was taken by the ‘history’ in one face.
I’m an artist and just wanted to capture that ‘history’
and beauty!
Please accept this portrait as my tribute to her.
Best wishes, Lissa Thompson
Around Indian Country
Vaccine mandate
at Umatilla Tribes
Tribal employees of four
Umatilla tribal entities have until
September 30 to get fully vacci-
nated.
This is an approach that is be-
coming increasingly common, as
the Food and Drug Administration
recently gave full approval of the
Pfizer vaccination. Previously the
vaccine was approved condition-
ally, as an emergency measure.
The Confederated Tribes of
Warm Springs Tribal Council for
now has not chosen to mandate
vaccination for tribal employees,
leaving the decisions to the employ-
ees themselves, with encourage-
ment from Council and IHS, the
branch supervisors, department
heads and enterprises managers.
At Umatilla the approach is dif-
ferent. Though that tribe has held
mass vaccination clinics and given
a $50,000 grand prize for a fully
vaccinated employee, an estimated
35 employees working at those
entities are not vaccinated.
The recent Umatilla directive
came from their interim executive
director, Teara Farrow Ferman.
The mandate applies to four
tribal entities: the Yellowhawk
Tribal Health Center, the Umatilla
Education Department, the
Umatilla Tribal Fire Department,
and the Umatilla’s Covid-19
screeners.
The Board of Trustees sent out
a public statement early this month
regarding the matter:
“To lead by example, all Con-
federated Tribes of Umatilla In-
dian Reser vation Board of
Trustee members and officers
are fully vaccinated against
Covid-19. This order comes af-
ter careful consideration of our
ability to carry out tribal govern-
ment and health care services to
the community, and the contin-
ued hardship on the CTUIR.
“Currently hospitals in the state
of Oregon and the surrounding
counties are reaching capacity,” the
Board of Trustees continued in the
Mask exceptions: Accommo-
dations, such as a face shield are
available, but limited to legitimate
medical reasons or because of a
known and documented disability.
Important note: 504 or Indi-
vidual Education plans are meant
for students with documented dis-
abilities. They may not be used by
parents to avoid the mask mandate.
Enforcement: If a student
does not consistently and correctly
wear a face covering, school staff
will reteach the expectation with
grace and patience.
“We will continually provide in-
struction and positive reinforce-
These graphs show the Covid-19 case
demographics on the reservation as of
September 1, as provided by the
tribes’ Covid Response Team.
On the first of this month there were
16 active cases in the community, with
two hospitalizations and one
death.Total breakthrough cases were
29: The breakthrough cases
demonstrate the vaccination is
effective, because these cases are
much less likely to result in serious
illness, hospitlization and death.
statement.
“Newly infected people suffer-
ing from symptoms of Covid-19
that require respiratory therapy
are being transported to other
states for Covid-19 emergency
care. We are facing shortages in
medical care capacities, equipment
and protections.”
Yellowhawk is approaching
1,700 vaccinated individuals as the
tribe braces for a surge in cases. It
“will likely become worse after
upcoming large local events,” the
memo stated, probably alluding to
the Pendleton Round-Up this
month.
Warm Springs Victims of Crime Services is avail-
able by phone for any questions or needs you have
about domestic violence, sexual assault, child and
elder abuse. Call 541-553-2293. If you have an
emergency situation, please call the Warm Springs
Police Department dispatch at 541-553-1171 or 911.
ment to help all students adapt to
this change in our school facilities,”
the district safety plans states.
“The district will not be puni-
tive; however, if a student continu-
ously refuses to wear a face cov-
ering in school, they will be pro-
vided with the disrtict online learn-
ing option.”
Vaccine mandate for k-12
staff: In August, Gov. Brown an-
nounced that all teachers, educa-
tors, support staff, and volunteers
in k-12 schools will be required to
be fully vaccinated by October 18.
It is the understanding of 509-
J district officials that there will be
no option for weekly covid testing
in lieu of vaccination. As with
other state employees and
healthcare workers, religious and
medical- and disability-related ex-
ceptions will apply.
The district anticipates further
details and rules from the Oregon
Health Authority.
From the Superintendent
Dear 509-J Families,
I am honored and excited to
begin my first year as Superinten-
dent of Jefferson County School
District. Even as we face increas-
ing and ongoing challenges of
Covid-19, I’m hopeful about the
upcoming school year.
We are eager to return to school
this fall, and are excited about op-
portunities for students to flourish
academically, socially, and in ways
that highlight each student’s
strengths and assets. To do that
well, we have an incredible team
of teachers, staff members and
leaders who are eager to welcome
each student to their learning in the
coming days.
We are excited about the ability
to implement best practices we
learned during the last year in class-
rooms. Some of those are con-
nected to the ability to provide each
student with a computer as a learn-
ing tool. We also are pleased to
note that our online learning op-
tion, CASA (509J Online), has been
improved to offer a more person-
alized learning experience for stu-
dents who found that online learn-
ing was a good match for them.
However, we are perhaps even
more excited to be able to open
the doors this fall for full school
days in our schools. Starting a
school year…nothing beats that!
From Warm Springs to Metolius
to Big Muddy to Madras…509J is
ready for a new year!
Guiding the decisions we will
make this year and beyond are the
following principles or themes:
Students flourish here. We care
for each other. Better every day.
Dr. Jay Mathisen, Superinten-
dent.