The incoming Šináata Scholars visit the Whitman College campus on Aug. 14 in Walla Walla, Washington. From left are Joel Satterwhite, Oscar Huesties, Addison Jones-Kosey, Lauralee Stanger and Addison Carey. Not pictured is Tatiwiyat Buck. WHITMAN COLLEGE

Largest-ever cohort awarded Šináata Scholarships to Whitman College

WALLA WALLA, Wash. – Whitman College in partnership with the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) have named Addison Carey, Addison Jones-Kosey, Joel Satterwhite, Lauralee Stanger, Oscar Huesties and Tatiwiyat Buck as the Šináata Scholarship cohort for the 2025-26 academic year.  “It is a joy to welcome these six incredible students to Whitman’s growing cohort of Šináata Scholars,” said Whitman College President Sarah…

A returning coho salmon at the Suquamish Tribe’s Grovers Creek Hatchery in Poulsbo, Washington. K. KING/U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE

WSU team unlocks biological process behind coho die-offs

BY SHAWN VESTAL, WSU NEWS & MEDIA RELATIONS For years, scientists at Washington State University’s (WSU) Puyallup Research & Extension Center have been working to untangle a mystery: Why do coho salmon in Puget Sound creeks seem to suffocate after rainstorms — rising to the surface, gaping and swimming in circles before dying? In 2018, the die-offs were linked to…

A grass fire burned about 300 acres near Highway 11 and Duff Road from the evening of Monday, Aug. 11 to Wednesday, Aug. 13.

Fire burns 300 acres on Umatilla reservation

By DANELI ATILANO MISSION – A grass fire burned about 300 acres on the Umatilla Indian Reservation from the evening of Monday, Aug. 11 to Wednesday, Aug. 13, prompting a large multi-agency response. No structures were damaged, and no injuries were reported. The fire was reported at 6:52 p.m. on Aug. 11 near Highway 11 and Duff Road. It quickly…

Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center’s Little Free Pantry located at the July Grounds near the Veterans Memorial. CHRIS AADLAND/CUJ

Little Free Food Pantry Project Comes to Fruition

Press release provided by Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center MISSION – Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center (Yellowhawk) is excited to announce the completion of the “Little Free Food Pantry” project led by Mariah Watchman, Yellowhawk Resource Coordinator. This project began in March of 2024 and has been a collaboration with various staff and community members to whom we are extremely grateful. CTUIR…

Spanning 11,438 acres, the Qapqápa Wildlife Area in Union County, Oregon, will be co-managed as a working forest by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. ROCKY MOUNTAIN ELK FOUNDATION

$22M Earmarked for CTUIR-backed Wildlife Area Project

MISSION – A wildlife area project backed by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) has been awarded $22 million in federal funding. Funded through the U.S. Forest Service’s Forest Legacy Program, the Qapqápa (pronounced cop-COP-a) Wildlife Area State-Tribal Partnership Project will complete an acquisition of more than 11,400 acres with the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife…

CUJ Political Campaign Advertising Policy 2025

CUJ news coverage and reporting of campaigns, candidates or ballot issues shall adhere to the Society of Professional Journalists standards of accepted ethics. CUJ news coverage and reporting on campaigns, candidates or ballot issues is at the discretion of the CUJ editor and is not considered advertising. The CUJ does not endorse specific candidates or constitutional amendments that may be…

Two teens in kayaks embrace while looking at the Klamath River. A group of Native American teenagers from tribes across the river basin were welcomed by an excited crowd as the group finished their month-long journey kayaking down the Klamath River after the removal of four hydropower dams. BRITTANY PETERSON/AP

Native American teens kayak major US river to celebrate removal of dams and return of salmon

By BRITTANY PETERSON, Associated Press KLAMATH, Calif. (AP) — As bright-colored kayaks push through a thick wall of fog, voices and the beats of drums build as kayakers approach a crowd that has formed on the beach. Applause erupts as the boats land on the sandy spit that partially separates the Klamath River from the Pacific Ocean in northern California. Native…

Next Board of Trustees Meeting: 9 a.m., April 28, 2025

April 21, 2025: CTUIR Board of Trustees meeting summary

Meeting called to order at 9:01 a.m. by Board of Trustees (BOT) Chairman Gary I. Burke. Invocation given by Member at Large Toby Patrick. Quorum of six was verified with Vice Chairman Aaron Ashley and Members at Large Lisa Ganuelas and Steven Hart on personal leave. Agenda approved 5-0-0. Old Business Public Law-280 Retrocession Testimony (25-002): This resolution authorizes Member…