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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1991)
Smoke Signals January 1991 page 6 BIA to Conduct Educational Hearings During the Spring of 1990, the Bureau of Indian Affairs conducted "consultation hearings" with Tribes, parents, school boards and other interested parties. These consultations were conducted to discuss the Bureau's proposed reorganization effort. Because of the negative response and Tribal reluctance to accept any changes without adequate review by Tribes, the Bureau is following up the spring consultations. On January 23, 1991, the Bureau will conduct hearings to address the following topics: 1. Adult Education Programs - proposed rule. 2. Higher Education Program proposed rule. 3. Early Childhood Development Programs -proposed rule. 4. Minimum Academic Standards for the Basic Education of Indian Children & National Criteria for Dormitory Standards. 5. Program Eligibility - Definition of Indian. 6. Chapter I Eligibility - proposed change in distribution formula. Tribes and interested individuals may present oral testimony or file written comments concerning consulta tion topics. If you would like more information regard ing the hearing, contact Mr. Van Peters, (503) 230-5682; or the BIA Office of Indian Education Programs, Mr. Edward Parisian (202) 208-6123, (202) 208-6175. Remember January 23, 1991, hearings to be held in Portland. B.LA. to Allocate $580,250 for Fiscal Year 1991 Grants The Portland Area Office has received an allocation of $580,250 for grants and is now accepting applications. The grant applications will be approveddisapproved based on the following criteria: First Priority: Economic enterprises on the reservation. A. Complete Application. B. Applicant has a firm commitment of funds for 75 percent of loan. C Creation of the highest ratio of Indian jobs to total amount of dollars to be invested. D. Creation of the highest ratio of income to a Tribe or its members in relation to total dollars invested. E. Generate the most non-bureau dollars. Second Priority: Economic enterprises located off reservation. A. Complete Application B. Applicant has a firm commitment of funds for 75 percent of loan. C. Creation of the highest ratio of Indian jobs to total amount of dollars to be invested. D. Creation of the highest ratio of income to a Tribe or its members in relation to total dollars invested. E. Generate the most non-bureau dollars. For more information contact the Economic Develop ment department at 879-5522. High School Seniors, Don't Delay! High school seniors who wish to enroll at many Oregon four year colleges or universities, be aware there may be a spring deadline for filing for admission. If you are interested in attending the following, be aware of these datcst ADMISSION DEADLINES Oregon State University March 1st University of Oregon March 1st Portland State University July 1st Eastern Oregon State College August 1st Western Oregon State College April 15th Oregon Health Sciences University February 15lh (School of Nursing) Southern Oregon State College August 1st Oregon Institute of Technology June 1st You should also be aware that some schools may have a "ceiling" on the number of students that are admitted. Don't Delay, File Early!!! ' Nanitch Sahallie Center A special prayer service was held at the Nanitch Sahallie Treatment Center for Indian youth in Keizer, Oregon earlier this month. Guests Ramona Rank and Helen Peterson led the prayer service for students from Chemawa and other High Schools. A topic of discussion was: What kind of program the students would like to see which might enrich the spirituality of each student and develop self confidence. Bush asks Lawyers to Study Ban on Minority Scholarships Oregon Minority Achievement Scholarship Program in Danger? "Oregon and other states are awaiting President Bush's response to a US Department of Education ruling that bars colleges from directing scholarships to racial minorities," the Statesman Journal reported on 12-14-90. The Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Michael L. Williams reported that "it was illegal for federally supported institutions to offer race specific scholar ships". Since it's inception the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde has had a total of 11 Tribal members compete for and receive Minority Achievement Scholarships. Current students receiving Minority Scholarships are; Angie Leno, Western Oregon State College, Chad Stryker, Dana Leno and Chris Leno, Oregon State University. The status of the Minority Scholarship is that Oregon schools will continue with their current practice. The Scholarship has undergone several name changes and is now referred to as the "Under-represented Minority Achievement Scholarship". Applications are now available for the scholarships per the 1991-1992 school year. Let's hope this valuable asset is not discontinued, it would be a terrible loss to minority students in Oregon. We need to keep our best Indian students in State! By Maureen Dowd New York Times News Service WASHINGTON-Trying to quell an angry reaction in education and civil rights circles, President Bush said Friday that he had instructed the White House counsel to review a Department of Education decision to bar federal aid to colleges that offer scholarships designated solely for minority students. "I've asked our staff here to give me a quick readout on that so we can make a determination," Bush said at a news conference before his departure to Camp David for the weekend. . Bush praised Michael L Williams, the Education Department's assistant secretary for civil rights, who stunned White House officials and detonated a political bomb when he announced a new policy stating that "race-exclusive" scholarships were discriminatory and therefore illegal. Bush said he had looked at Williams' background and found him "an extraordinarily sensitive, very intelligent person," noting that "I don't think in this case anybody would accuse the person that promulgated those resolutions of doing it on a racist basis." The president was alluding, in his remarks about Williams' background, to the fact that the Education Department official is black. Williams argued that it is constitutionally illegal to have race-based scholarships. But college administrators and scholarship fund directors, along with leaders in the education and civil rights fields, charged that the decision would undercut painstaking efforts to improve the enrollment levels of minorities at schools. - Since Wednesday, when the new policy came to light, White House officials and Cabinet members have divided into two camps over the issue, engaging in an intense argument about whether it would be .best to defend the policy, soften the policy, or "ice it", as one , opponent put it. Many White House officials were alarmed, or "in hysteria," as one put it, that the abrupt announcement had swiftly soured into a political loser for Bush. Officials were especially distressed that the delicate issue had unexpectedly fallen squarely into Bush's lap. Whatever decision the president makes is bound to create political problems. "Politically, it was a dumb move," Lyn Nofziger, the political director in the Reagan White House, told USA Today. "You've gone out and created a situation where black activists and others can say you're taking off after blacks." ' The opposition camp prepared draft statement Friday repudiating the policy for the president, hoping he would renounce it before he left for the weekend, putting the mess behind him. They said, in frantic tones, that it was "Bob Jones University revisited," recalling the controversy when the Reagan administration tried to give tax exemptions to colleges with discriminatory practices. They reckoned that Bush could easily back away from the policy, merely pointing out, truthfully, that the White House had not had a chance to review it before Williams announced it. "The White House's hands are clean in this," one senior Bush aide said. Williams spent several hours in meetings at the White House Friday and was unavailable for comment. "It was crazy that Williams was making major policy decisions without a by your leave," said a White House official. Those who were upset about the policy included Jack F. Kemp, the housing and urban development secretary, Louis W. Sullivan, the secretary of health and human services; Roger Porter, the domestic policy adviser; James Pinkerton, also on the domestic policy staff; James Ciccone and Ed Rogers, aids to John H. Sununu, the chief of staff; and Ede Holiday, the Cabinet secre tary. . . ... : v ; . .' Sununu and C. Boyden Gray, the president's counsel, were holding their opinion in abeyance. , ' . . .
