S moke S ignals
FEBRUARY 15, 2017
11
Tribal Council chair testifies before Oregon Legislature
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
SALEM – Tribal Council Chair-
man Reyn Leno testified before two
Oregon legislative committees on
Thursday, Feb. 9, in support of bills
that would make funding available
to Tribal governments for construc-
tion and restoration of memorials
honoring veterans and direct the
state Department of Education
to develop curriculum relating to
the Native American experience
in Oregon.
Leno had early morning duty, tes-
tifying at 8 a.m. before the Oregon
House’s Agriculture and Natural
Resources Committee about House
Bill 2405, which would make the
state funding available for veterans
memorials.
“HB 2405 is a solid step in the
right direction,” Leno said.
However, that was not the only
veterans-related issue that he tack-
led during his testimony.
Leno, who also is a member of
the Oregon Department of Veter-
ans Affairs Advisory Committee
and is a Vietnam War-era Marine
Corps veteran, urged legislators to
support the Oregon Department
of Veterans Affairs and to “utilize
funding approved through Measure
96 above that which is currently
budgeted.”
In November, Oregon voters
overwhelmingly approved Measure
96, which dedicates Oregon Lot-
tery funds to veterans. Veterans
expected to get at least $31 million
during the next two years — $13
million, which they received in the
last two-year state budget, plus an
additional $18 million in lottery
funds.
However, Gov. Kate Brown is
proposing to give the Department
of Veterans Affairs a total of $21
million over two years, $10 million
less than the expected allocation.
“As far as the funding for veter-
ans, I personally have gone through
trying to get something done and I
think here is one of the main prob-
lems: The mentality of you going
to Veterans Affairs and trying to
get some help and coming away
feeling like you are a mere statistic
needs to change. I am a U.S. Ma-
rine, served
in Viet-
nam, so I’ve
got a lot of
knowledge
of that,”
Leno said,
departing
from his
prepared
statement.
Reyn Leno
“I think
that Oregon
looks at being very proud of some of
the things that they do, but we need
to be proud of how we take care of
our veterans. We need to set the
bar, not the minimum. I think the
people of Oregon spoke very clear
on 96. It wasn’t ‘give ’em here and
take away there.’ ”
Rep. Brad Witt (D-Clatskanie)
said that he agreed with Leno. “I
agree with your analysis that Mea-
sure 96 was additive and not back-
fill. I suspect, sir, that if we were
to go out on the street and ask the
first 10 voters to pass by us they’d
agree with us, too,” Witt said.
“Veterans are underserved,” Leno
said. “More than two-thirds of the
350,000 veterans in Oregon are
not receiving federal services and
connecting to services is severely
delayed.”
Leno said that the Grand Ronde
Tribe has an agreement with the
federal Department of Veterans
Affairs that allows the Tribe to
serve Native veterans through the
Tribal Health & Wellness Center.
“By allowing Tribal clinics to
provide health care to Native vet-
erans, as well as be reimbursed for
that care through the Department
of Veterans Affairs, Tribes help
Native veterans living in rural
areas who cannot access or travel
to the Veterans Affairs facilities in
Portland, and whom in many cases
prefer to be seen by a culturally
sensitive provider.
“We ask that you also help to cre-
ate legislation that allows Oregon
Tribes to serve non-Native veterans
who live in rural communities as
either spouses or residents, but also
face the same logistical problems in
accessing health care.
“In closing, the Confederated
Tribes of Grand Ronde encourages
support for HB 2405 and for all
Oregon’s veterans and asks that
you please prioritize programs that
support Native and non-Native
veterans and ensure that veterans
programs are adequately funded.”
House Bill 2405 is sponsored by
Rep. John Lively, a Democrat from
Salem.
In the afternoon, Leno testified
before the Senate Education Com-
mittee in support of Senate Bill 13,
which also provides for professional
development to teachers and ad-
ministrators and requires school
districts to implement the Native
curriculum for students in kinder-
garten through 12th grade by the
2019-20 school year.
“There are nine federally recog-
nized Tribes in Oregon,” Leno said.
“The history of our peoples, who
have lived in Oregon since time im-
memorial, is significant for all Ore-
gonians, but today is either ignored
or poorly described in our schools.
Most Oregon students learn more
about the Sioux and Apaches than
they do about the Umpqua, Molalla,
Rogue River, Kalapuya or Chasta.
“Senate Bill 13 is an investment
in Native American communities.
The nine Tribes in Oregon have
invested in local schools and we are
still living with dire outcomes. For
example, the current Native Amer-
ican graduation rate in Oregon is
only 56.4 percent, and our children
are not performing at grade level
for many subjects, including basics
like math and science. Many teach-
ers are not prepared or equipped to
discuss issues surrounding Indian
Country, such as Tribal sovereign-
ty, Tribal government land remov-
al, Termination and Restoration.
Some of the history is complicated
and can be difficult to discuss.
“Grand Ronde has always recog-
nized the importance of teaching
Native history in Oregon. The
Tribe has developed a history cur-
riculum because of the need for
historically accurate and cultural-
ly relevant curriculum in Oregon
schools about Oregon’s first peo-
ples. In 2014, this curriculum was
provided to the Willamina School
District and is now in 10 school
districts in Oregon.
“The Tribe, through Spirit Moun-
tain Community Fund, has also
made funds available for the other
Oregon Tribes to develop Tribal
specific history curriculums. It is
the Tribe’s goal to build respect
and understanding of Tribal history
and culture, to give all youth the
opportunity to learn about Oregon’s
Native history, and to foster a cul-
turally respectful representation of
Native Americans.
“CTGR encourages support for
Senate Bill 13 because it will have
a significant impact on the lives and
education of Native people and all
Oregonians. It will also correct the
years of omission from Oregon’s
history curriculum of the nine
sovereign Tribes. With this bill we
can focus our efforts toward what
is important – the education of our
children.”
Leno added that he thinks teach-
ing Native American curriculum in
Oregon schools might help Native
students remain in school.
The bill also would require the
Department of Education to col-
laborate with Oregon Tribes in the
development of curriculum and
the professional development for
school employees, as well as make
funds available to Tribes to support
collaboration efforts.
Senate Bill 13 was introduced at
the request of Gov. Kate Brown for
the Chief Education Office.
“I think we all know that we have
a very rich Native history in this
state,” Brown testified before the
Senate Education Committee. “It
has been preserved with great care
by our Tribes and Native Ameri-
cans across the state of Oregon. …
I see the purpose of Senate Bill 13
to develop curriculum that helps
share the stories, triumphs, culture
and contributions of Native Ameri-
cans in Oregon.
“We believe that by incorporat-
ing more relevant and culturally
responsive curriculum into our
existing curriculum it will make
greater strides in keeping students
engaged. Native American history
is Oregon history, and it is essential
curriculum that will benefit all of
our students.”