General welfare needs is how the CTUIR now classifies its allocations to tribal members. The CTUIR is one of the few tribes so far that have made tax code changes to how it shares gaming revenue with tribal citizens. CUJ | STOCK PHOTO

CTUIR member dividend payments increase  

By CHRIS AADLAND, Reporter MISSION – Tribal members will see a larger quarterly revenue sharing payment this month. May payments will be calculated using the new formula approved by Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) leaders last year. Tribal officials told the Board of Trustees (BOT) on May 6 that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) had finally…

Red dresses and shirts with messages or names of murdered or missing people, personalized messages planted outside on miniature dresses and a parade of community members wearing red helped demonstrate on May 6 that their loved ones haven’t been forgotten and that solutions are still needed.

CTUIR hosts MMIW events, display

By CHRIS AADLAND, Reporter MISSION – Red dresses and shirts with messages or names of murdered or missing people, personalized messages planted outside on miniature dresses and a parade of community members wearing red helped demonstrate on Monday that their loved ones haven’t been forgotten and that solutions are still needed. The displays were part of two Confederated Tribes of…

Homicide is the fourth-leading cause of death among Native American women between the ages of 1 and 19 years and the sixth-leading cause of death for ages 20 to 44, as of 2017 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. May 6, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation honored and remembered those Missing and Murdered Indigenous People.

MMIW Awareness: A Day to Remember Centuries of Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women

Guest Opinion By: Professor Victoria Sutton May 06, 2024 Our awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) may be relatively new within the last decade, but it started long ago with Pocahontas, or Matoaka. Contrary to the Disney movie built on historical legends of early America, Pocahontas was forced to marry a colonist from the Jamestown Colony in order…

A map shows the footprint of the nearly 2,000 acre Thornburgh resort site in relation to Redmond, Oregon. MacGregor Campbell / OPB

Warm Springs Tribes win treaty rights appeal over Central Oregon resort

By Emily Cureton Cook Oregon Public Broadcasting Deschutes County officials have backed plans for Thornburgh’s 950 luxury homes, lodgings, a golf course and a private lake. Judges on the Oregon Court of Appeals delivered a win to tribes from the Columbia River basin May 1. Three appeals court judges found the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals, or LUBA, made…

Gov. Tina Kotek holds up a ceremonially signed copy of Senate Bill 1567 while members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Board of Trustees and elected state officials applaud on Thursday, April 25, outside of the Nixyáawii Governance Center in Mission. SB 1567 or the Walla Wall 2050 Strategic Plan calls for cooperative water management between Oregon and Washington in the Walla Walla Basin to help restore salmon. Standing from left to right are Board Member at Large Lisa Ganuelas, Rep. Bobbie Levy, Sen. Bill Hansell, Board Members at Large Steven Hart and Corinne Sams, Chairman Gary I. Burke, General Council Chairman Alan Crawford and Board Vice Chairman Aaron Ashley. LEE GAVIN | FILE PHOTO

Gov. Kotek and First Lady visit CTUIR

MISSION – The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) on Thursday, April 25, welcomed Gov. Tina Kotek and First Lady Aimee Kotek Wilson for a visit that included a ceremonial signing of a bill calling for Oregon and Washington states to collaboratively resolve water issues facing the Walla Walla River. Kotek and the First Lady began the day…

In this photo provided by the Cheyenne River Youth Project, some of the land purchased by the Native American-led nonprofit organization, is seen near Bear Butte State Park in Meade County, S.D., Aug. 22, 2023. The Cheyenne River Youth Project announced, Thursday, April 11, 2024, that it purchased nearly 40 acres (16.2 hectares) of land in the Black Hills of South Dakota amid a growing movement that seeks to return land to Indigenous people. JULIE A. GARREAU | CHEYENNE RIVER YOUTH PROJECT.

Native American-led nonprofit says it bought 40 acres in the Black Hills of South Dakota

By ASSOCIATED PRESS A Native American-led nonprofit has announced that it purchased nearly 40 acres of land in the Black Hills of South Dakota amid a growing movement that seeks to return land to Indigenous people. The Cheyenne River Youth Project announced in an April 11 statement that it purchased the tract of land adjacent to Bear Butte State Park…

CTUIR Tribal Court holds ceremonial swearing-in for new judges

By CHRIS AADLAND and TRAVIS SNELL MISSION – Three associate judges of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) received a ceremonial oath of office and presentation of robes on Wednesday, April 17 inside the Tribal Court chamber. CTUIR Chief Judge William Johnson ceremoniously swore in Naomi Stacy, Louisa Allman and Matthew Johnson before he and Associate Judges Doug…

Two young girls twirl in front of the Nixyáawii Education Center’s Week of the Young Child sign on April 8 in Mission. Students and faculty of the Átaw Miyánašma Learning Center, Cay-Uma-Wa Head Start and InterMountain Education Service District Early Childhood Special Education classrooms paraded from the Nixyáawii Education Center to the Nixyáawii Governance Center as part of the week’s celebrations. LISA SNELL | CUJ PHOTO

CTUIR Celebrates Week of the Young Child

MISSION – The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) and its Early Childhood Department celebrated the Week of the Young Child April 8-12 to honor early learning children, as well as their teachers, families and communities.  Rayne Spencer, Child Development Intervention coordinator, said the CTUIR participated in the weeklong event to show how much goes into a child’s…

WWCC student Brittani Drennan and son Zylon | WWCC COURTESY PHOTO

WWCC offers students one-on-one help with financial aid applications

May 1 is the priority deadline The new changes in the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) have made more financial aid available, including grants that do not need to be repaid. The form is also shorter and, for many people, easier to complete. Walla Walla Community College Navigators are ready to help.  Call the Student Success Center at…

Julie Taylor has been named the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) 2024 Individual Champion for Native Children.

Julie Taylor named NICWA 2024 Individual Champion for Native Children

MISSION, Ore. – Julie Taylor, Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) director for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), has been named the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) 2024 Individual Champion for Native Children. Taylor, an enrolled CTUIR member in her 12th year as DCFS director, was expected to accept the award at the 42nd…