Smoke Signals
New Education Manager Sees More Technology, More Emphasis On Transitions
Tribal member April Campbell returns to the Tribe and the Education Department after a year with family in Washington.
10 NOVEMBER 1 5, 2006
By Ron Karten
With the Education Trust Fund
scheduled to be endowed by the end
of this year, Tribal member April
Campbell has arrived as Education
Manager at a perfect time.
Beginning 2007, investment
income from the endowment will
fund some 13 Tribal Education
programs.
Campbell comes on as a manager
with experience as an Education
Specialist in the department from
2000 to 2005 when the family
moved to central Washington state
to be with a relative with a difficult
illness.
"I really hated to leave my stu
dents and family," she said.
Time has passed and her mother-in-law
is doing better, so now the
Campbells are back. Her husband,
Brian Campbell, took care of the
family working for the Douglas
County PUD in Washington, and
before that here in Grand Ronde,
he worked with the Tribal Educa
tion Department in a number of
capacities, including as a K-5 Su
pervisor and as Youth Education
Secretary. Today, Brian is keeping
up with the Tribal kids, Hunter, 4,
and Kiona, 7.
Hunter, aka Superman on Hal
loween Day, wanted to take the
elevator to the second floor rather
than showing off his super powers
by leaping the tall building with a
single bound. Still, he filled out the
suit like the real thing.
Meanwhile, his mom described
the state of education in Metropolis,
turning to the family's experience
with Kiona, who is at the Oakdale
Heights School in Dallas. She
praised strong parent involvement
there, including many parents
who volunteer in the classes, and
said that she hopes to bring that
involvement to the Tribal educa
tion program incrementally, being
sensitive to the needs and practices
of the local community.
In addition, Education is on the
edge of some other possibilities.
Campbell wants to focus on re
incorporating technology into all
the education programs, again be
ing sensitive to the fact that not all
Tribal members have computers or
computer skills.
Still, the department is helping in
that regard with some 15 computer
stations available much of the time
for the use of the community. Un
less a class is in the computer room,
there is great availability to both
the computers and the internet
through those computers.
"Students can just sign up and
come in," she said.
Among the opportunities are SAT
testing and web access, but "the
availability is endless," she said.
With satellite service from
Chemeketa Community College,
many classes are available with
dual interaction right here in the
Grand Ronde Education Center.
Though Chemeketa classes are
open to the entire community,
presently, only three-to-five stu
dents take advantage in any given
term.
While on-site classes continue
to be offered through Chemeketa,
i ri
all need at least 12
students for a class
to go forward.
Campbell's ex
perience is in the
higher education
areas where she
has worked, and
also where her
own education
is taking her.
She earned B
Bachelor's
degree
in Man
agement of Orga
nizational
Leadership at
George Fox Col
lege, and is now earning a Master's
of Education at George Fox, with a
specialty in Higher Education.
She allows that she has a lot to
learn in Education's other pro
grams. "The thing I would really like to
see," she said, "is for Higher Edu
cation to work closely with Early
Childhood and Youth Ed programs,
and visa versa.
"Sometimes, we're too wrapped
up in one special area without
enough concern for where they go
next."
"And we're not just here for
academics," she said. "We're here
for total wellness, for the social,
emotional, academic and physical
growth of the students."
Overlapping within Education
programs is important, Campbell
said, because it provides a smooth
Tribal Member & Education
Manager April Campbell
transition from one to the next.
Overlapping is also important with
other services that the Tribe pro
vides, like Social Services.
"The (Education) program is the
best place to work," she said, "be
cause of the dedicated employees
who go above and beyond. They
take students to school. They
will call about attendance issues.
They'll feed the kids, attend their
games, events and functions, all to
support the students."
"Overall," she said, "I am just so
blessed to be able to work in the
Tribe's Education Division. Giving
members the opportunity to ac
quire trainings or education is just
an awesome responsibility!"
Where Are They Now: A Glimpse at the Success of the 1 998-1 999 Hatfield Fellow
By Angie Sears, Tribal Mentee
It's been seven years since he
stepped down off the Hill in D.C.
and still Pete Wakeland, 1998-1999
Hatfield Fellow, has a lasting hun
ger for Tribal politics.
Wakeland, 44, was the first Hat
field Fellow selected by the Spirit
Mountain Community Fund and
Confederated Tribes of Grand
Ronde to go to Washington D.C.
and learn the political ropes of the
Oregon Congressional Delegation.
Wakeland was assigned to Sena
tor Wyden's office and had the op
portunity to assist in resolving a
variety of American Indian issues,
including Natural Resources, De
partment of Justice, Department of
Agriculture, Bureau of Indian Af
fairs, Cow Creek Huckleberry Patch
Legislation, and pension reform.
He also had an opportunity to work
with Senator Smith's staff in the
restoration of reservation lands for
the CoosLower Umpqua Tribe.
He graduated from Oregon State
University with a Bachelor of Sci
ence in Forest Management, and
entered the Fellowship program
with the intent of working with
Public Resource Polices.
"I wanted to get involved with the
development and review of Natural
Resources policy where it all hap
pens up on the Hill," Wakeland
said.
Wakeland feels that the program
was a great success because it
provided him with some valuable
contacts that he still uses today,
and reinforced the key elements
of professionalism and political
sensitivity.
He had done internships before
entering the Fellowship and found
that the level of responsibility be
tween a staffer and an intern was
vastly different. He was pleasantly
surprised by the reception he re
ceived upon arrival in Wyden's
office, and by the expectations that
the staff held for him.
"I had no idea that I was going
to be treated just like another
staffer," he said. "As soon as I got
my desk organized I had stacks of
things to do, projects to work on,
and problems to solve. I was well
received and just thrown right into
the fire."
"Pete was an invaluable member
of Senator Wyden's staff during his
Hatfield Fellowship. He worked on
any number of important natural
resource and Tribal issues, and
made a real difference during his
year with us. I think his service re
flected very well on the fellowship's
namesake, Senator Hatfield," said
Josh Kardon, Chief of Staff to U.S.
Senator Ron Wyden.
Wakeland is currently employed
by the Tribe as the acting Direc-
r: .;
" :
' - 'v
' - ' S
Tribal Member & Acting
Director of Operations
Pete Wakeland
tor of Operations. He utilizes his
learned skills on a daily basis
whether dealing with people who
are dissatisfied with the services
that the. Tribe has provided, or by
working to maintain the integrity
of the Tribal Government while re
solving any issues that may arise.
Wakeland reflected on the work
he did for the CoosLower Umpqua
Tribe as the work he was most
proud of. In April of 2004 he was
working as the Natural Resources
Manager for the Confederated
Tribes of Grand Ronde, when Sena
tor Gordon Smith asked him to
testify on behalf of Senate Bill 868
Coos, Umpqua, and Siuslaw Res
toration Amendments Act of 2003.
"This was huge for me, it re
ally was," Wakeland said. "At the
time, Coos was the only Oregon
Tribe that didn't have reservation
land. I felt a sense of pride work
ing towards this cause because as
the Natural Resources manager I
knew what the Grand Ronde Tribe
went through in getting back our
land. I worked with that land every
day, and I knew it would always be
available as a Tribal resource."
"So to know what this feels like
and to be able to try and help some
one else get to this point, really was
the brightest moment for me."
Today, the CoosLower Umpqua
Tribes still await a decision on the
fight to restore their reservation
lands. Wakeland pointed out that
Bills can take as long as six to eight
years from the time they're intro
duced and the time that a decision
is made.
"Even if it takes that long, I'm go
ing to look back on it and whatever
role I played in it I'm going to feel
good about it," said Wakeland. "It
was very important for me, going
back there, working for those folks,
and helping them. I think that's
pretty significant." D
I