Smoke Signals 5
Retired Educators Honor Tribe and Tribal Members Regale Educators
Grand Ronde Tribal Elder Kathryn Harrison is an invited guest speaker.
NOVEMBER 1, 2002
By Ron Karten
With three songs in Chinuk, 11 members
from the K-5 Youth Education program won
the hearts of Oregon's Retired Educators.
They met October 6-8 at the Tribe's Spirit
Mountain Casino for their annual convention.
"We had fun doing it," said Caitlin Daniels,
who is still in her first year of learning this
Native language.
"I think we did good," said Halona Butler.
Among the offerings were stick game songs
of the students' own choosing, and they ac
companied themselves with drums. "The
older students get to do the drumming," said
Justine Colton, who has been studying the
Chinuk language for seven years. Many said
that they teach their younger siblings, and
some said that they speak the language with
older family members.
The group included Justine Colton, Halona Butler,
Carley Trammell, Scott Brown, Samantha
Cunningham, Synon Allen, Caitlin Daniels, Leland
Butler, Devin Larsen, Jade Colton and Codie Haller.
Matt Bucknell and Joann Empey Before & After
Teachers, Tony Johnson, Education Coordinator and
Language Specialist for the Cultural Resources de
partment, and Pearl Mekemson, a Health & Wellness
Prevention Education Counselor accompanied the
group, which has been working on these songs for
two years, but focusing on this performance for the
last two weeks.
"When languages were taken away," Bucknell told
the Educators, "they took away the most important
part of being a people."
At the end of the performance,
the students went among the
crowd to greet them, and many
Educators could not resist giving
the kids a hug.
- "Making the Elders happy made
them feel good," said Mekemson.
The students still remember
fondly performing for former
Grand Ronde Tribal Chair
Kathryn Harrison's retirement.
The three-day annual meeting of
Oregon Retired Educators Associa
tion also featured a memorable opening night ad
dress by Harrison. "She told her life story," said
Don Van Etten, president of the association. "For
,v fyt k) M L
1
Kathyrn
Harrison
"What's Your Name?"-
After performing in Chinuk for the
Oregon Retired Educators, the Tribe's
youth education kids are interviewed
by Smoke Signals Reporter Ron Karten
on Monday, October 7. The retired
educators gathered at the Grand
Ronde Tribe's Spirit Mountain Casino
for their annual state meeting.
Performers The Tribe's Lan
guage Specialist Tony Johnson leads Tribal
youth in a song. The children sang a fa
vorite stick game song for the 70 or so
teachers.
Photos by Peta Tinda
SY P
A Classy Don Van Etten, President of the Oregon Retired
Educators Association, talks with Johnson. The teachers gath
ered gave high praise for the efforts of the Tribal children who
had been practicing for two weeks prior to the event.
40 minutes, she had everyone absolutely enthralled,"
he said. Van Etten had tears in his eyes as he re
called Harrison describing the last time she saw
her mother. Both of Harrison's parents succumbed
to the flu epidemic when she was 10 years old.
"My wife reinforced: thank the Lord God created
woman," said Van Etten. "They carry on traditions
to the Seventh Generation."
"She is the archetypal strong woman," said Van
Etten. "An inspiration, an absolutely perfect way to
start our convention."
The basic premise for this year's convention, Van
Etten added, was "to honor the Confederated Tribes."
The business of the group is service, according to
Van Etten. The group supports reading programs
across the state, honors volunteer activities, and
lobbies on behalf of issues important to its member
Gus Popster Tahes Over at WiOarRina Kigh
By Ron Karten
"I focus on the kids," said Willamina High School's new principal, Gus Forster.
He is not the type "to glad hand or be political. Some want that. I'm too upfront
for that kind of thing. Time is too short and life is too precious to be beating
around the bush."
Forster comes from a life in school administration, including Alsea High School
(west of Corvallis) as both principal and principalsuperintendent, Imbler High
School (north of LaGrande) in the same double capacity, and Central Linn County
High School as principal.
At Willamina, he aims to spur school improvement with regard to student
scores and faculty development as well as student attendance. "Two to three
years ago, Willamina was a low-scoring school," he said, which gave the school
the opportunity to apply for help from the Comprehensive School Reform Dem
onstration Project, a federally-funded program that goes through the state De
partment of Education.
Starting in the 2000-2001 school year, the school received a three-year federal
grant worth $83,000year to improve in academic areas. And as part of that
grant, the staff selected the national Coalition of Essential Schools (CES)
(www.essentialschools.org) from among many possible school improvement
models, which provides "strategies for looking at curriculum," Forster said.
Improvement will be measured by existing state and local assessment exams.
Although improvement programs have been instituted in the past, Forster
said, "the track record of the Oregon legislature and the Oregon Department of
Education was not good. These programs come, and in two years, they're gone.
At least now, we have some consistency."
When Forster arrived - informally in June but officially in August, "teach
ers were gearing up to the process," he said. The model asks students to be
responsible and accountable. It asks that students "buy into" the program. "It
is student led and teacher facilitated. Unless we teach the kids what we're
doing, nothing's going to happen," said Forster.
The program also asks teachers to change. "Are those practices from 15 years
; 1 !: . i'3
j M lit t
" ' " L rSI
. W !
Gus Forster
ago still effective?" he asks rhetori
cally. "Probably not."
According to the CES website, the
program favors a "less is more" ap
proach: "that each student master a
limited number of essential skills and
areas of knowledge."
"A big thing this year," Foster
added, "is we're expecting kids to be
here and on-time. They can be late
three times in a trimester. The fourth
time, there's a consequence."
The school has added a 25-minute
"advisory period" (normal periods are
66 minutes) two days a week, in which
teachers work with students on their portfolios, organization skills, or the school
improvement process. On the other three days each week the students do some
silent reading of "any material that's appropriate." It is not an additional study
hall, however, and students are not using this time for reading textbooks, Forster
said.
Regarding sports and extra-curricular activities, Forster added, "it's (about)
getting kids involved."
"Keeping kids active after school is paramount," he said. "It helps provide
focus. It teaches that there are other things out there. It provides links to
various careers, leadership skills."
"It's sports," Forster said, "but what else are you learning? To manage time;
to keep a positive attitude; to become part of a team."
Forster's personal interests include hunting and fishing. He also stays in
volved keeping up with a range of high school activities.
"I enjoy what I do and that's what's important to me," he said.