Miisaninawiind :: January 4 - 10, 2021 |
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Boozhoo and welcome to the Miisaninawiind weekly newsletter!
The Miisaniinawind brings you important news, announcements and updates, designed specifically for the Red Cliff community. But that's not all. The weekly eNewsletter will also provide news about neighboring tribes, communities and broader issues across Indian Country that matter to you.
If you have photos, news or information you'd like to share, please email submissions to communications@redcliff-nsn.gov.
Check out our website HERE and our Facebook page HERE.
Want to receive the newsletter each week? Sign up HERE.
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COVID-19 Community Updates |
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An up-to-date list of COVID-19 related notices and educational resources can be found on the Red Cliff website.
Tribal Departments and Programs are still offering virtual and social-distance events! Check out the Events Calendar.
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Red Cliff Offers Free Ojibwemowin Classes
Wayeshkad Ojibwemowin with Memegwesi
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Free Ojibwemowin classes are being offered to the Tribal Community. Classes will be held virtually for 12 weeks beginning January 9, and will take place each Saturday from 10:00-11:30 AM.
A message from the course instructor:
"My name is Memegwesi. My english name is David Sutherland. My family / clan is Polar Bear - Waabak. My parents are Mary and Leonard Moose. A part of my childhood I spent growing up in the wilderness of Ontario and Quebec Canada with my mother where I learned a great deal of the Ojibwe culture and language."
To register please contact Richard LaFernier, Language and Culture Coordinator at 715-779-3700 ext 4261 or by email at richard.lafernier@redcliff-nsn.gov.
This series of Ojibwemowin classes is sponsored by the Red Cliff Tribal Historic Preservation Office, Treaty Natural Resources Department, Native Connections, Family Services, and Red Cliff Tribal Court.
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Tribal Council Meeting - January 4 |
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The Red Cliff Tribal Council is set to meet on Monday January 4 at Legendary Waters Buffalo Bay Grand Ballroom.
The Regular Session is scheduled to begin at 4:30 PM.
Click HERE to view the meeting agenda.
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Bayfield School Board Election
Candidacy Declaration due January 5
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The School District of Bayfield will hold an election on April 6, 2021 for three school board office openings. A Campaign Registration Statement and a Declaration of Candidacy must be filed no later than 5:00 PM on Tuesday January 5, 2021.
The term of office for a school board member is three years beginning on Monday April 26, 2021.
Click HERE for more information, including a guide for candidates and official Registration Statement and Notice of Candidacy Form.
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Free COVID-19 At Home Testing Kits Available |
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The State of Wisconsin and Vault Medical Services have teamed up to offer a new COVID-19 testing option for everyone who lives in Wisconsin, with or without symptoms, at no cost. This new service allows people to collect their own saliva samples for testing in their home. The capacity is expected to expand over time.
Step one: Request an at-home collection kit
Request an at-home collection kit using the button below. A collection kit will be delivered directly to your home; PO boxes are not eligible to have kits delivered.
Step two: Collect your sample
Step three: Send in your sample
FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REQUEST A COLLECTION KIT:
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Click HERE to visit the Red Cliff Community Health Center website.
Click HERE for COVID-19 Updates and Resources.
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Food Distribution Temporary Closure January 4 |
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The Food Distribution Program will be closed on Monday January 4, 2021. A new ordering system is being implemented that day.
Food Distribution is scheduled to reopen the following day, January 5.
Sorry for any inconvenience! Please call 715-779-3740 with any questions.
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New Child Care Center Is
Hiring Child Care Staff!
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The investment that has been put into this new daycare facility will impact economic development and improve the quality of life throughout our county. We are proud to say that our 4,000 square foot new construction child care center will boast 40 new child care spaces and will be located on a 1.3-acre site, located on the corner of Blueberry and Water Tower Roads.
The center is still looking to grow its childcare family. If you are a person or know a person that has a passion for working with children and would love to be part of our team, please visit www.redcliff-nsn.gov for a job description and application.
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Early Childhood Center January Newsletter
Click to access the full ECC January Newsletter
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Bayfield School District Weekly Updates |
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The Bayfield School District will be releasing
weekly updates for parents and students.
You can view the school's weekly updates on their website:
You can also find the weekly updates on the
Bayfield School District Facebook page.
Bayfield School Board Virtual Meeting
The Bayfield School Board will host its December meeting virtually on Monday December 21 at 6:00 PM.
Click HERE to access the meeting.
Meeting ID: 872 2394 9391
Passcode: 867557
Dial by your location
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
Meeting ID: 872 2394 9391
Passcode: 867557
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Access Scholarship Opportunities |
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Red Cliff Community Members have access to a variety of scholarships.
Click HERE to visit the Education Department's Scholarships page.
Upcoming External Scholarship Opportunities
Truman D. Picard Scholarship
The Truman D. Picard Scholarship Program is dedicated to the support of Native American students pursuing a higher education in Natural Resources.
Deadline March 12, 2021
AfterCollege AACN Nursing Scholarship
Deadlines: March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31
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Boys and Girls Club of Gitchigami |
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Boys and Girls Club staff have created Virtual Daily Lessons for youth to follow while the Club is closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lessons incorporate fitness and fun, fine arts, virtual field trips, mental workouts, and lessons on character, leadership, and service!
The lessons are dated, but contain activities that can be done year-round!
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Community Is Urged To Take Tribal
Housing Needs Assessment Survey
Data will enhance local programs, funding
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The Red Cliff Tribe, in partnership with the Red Cliff Housing Authority, has launched a Tribal Housing Needs Assessment household survey taking place from December 2020 - February 2021. The survey will have two phases: all households on-reservation will receive a door hanger with an online survey code in December, and all off-reservation member households in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan will receive a mailer containing an online survey code in January.
This survey is an important data collection project designed to compile accurate demographic, employment and housing information about Red Cliff tribal members. The data collected during this survey will be used to enhance local programs and attract funding for housing and other community programs.
Beginning in December 2020, survey staff will drop off information and instructions so that individuals can complete the survey online. Survey topics include: income, education, housing situation, use of and need for community programs and services. All household information requested by the survey is essential to accomplishing the project’s goals. The responses provided to field staff will remain confidential and anonymous.
Please provide honest and complete answers to field staff to support their efforts to:
- Challenge and replace the Census Bureau’s housing needs data for the Red Cliff Reservation
- Ensure that the Tribe receives their fair share of affordable housing funding
- Affirm the Tribe’s sovereignty and expand its self-determination
- Determine current and future need for housing and essential services
The information you provide will help our community!
The on-reservation survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete, and we need complete responses from every household on the reservation. The off-reservation Tribal Member survey will take approximately 5 minutes to complete. As a special thank you, households that complete the survey will receive an individual incentive and be entered into weekly drawings for larger prizes valued up to $200!
The project is funded by Enterprise Community Partners and the Red Cliff Chippewa Housing Authority.
On-reservation tribal members will receive a door hanger with a unique survey code at their home that they can use to complete their survey online at: https://www.redcliff-nsn.gov/survey. Off-reservation tribal members will receive a mailed letter containing their online survey code—watch for yours in the mail in January.
We will drop off paper forms to on-reservation households without internet access starting two weeks after we release the survey.
FOR QUESTIONS OR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Liz Boyd
Tribal Survey Manager, Red Cliff
Phone: (715) 779-3744 ext. 3515
Kevin Klingbeil (Survey Coordinator)
Managing Director, Big Water Consulting
Phone: (206) 466-2065
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Click HERE to access a Tenant Association interest form
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Gift Certificates Available! |
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Legendary Waters Resort & Casino |
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News Across Indian Country |
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Rural Relief Small Business Grants |
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The grant application period for the latest round of Rural Relief Small Business Grants is open.
Applications must be submitted by January 5, 2021.
Click HERE to learn more and to apply.
The next round of applications is scheduled for January 26 - February 2.
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Funding Opportunity For Native Artists |
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The Wisconsin Arts Board has announced the Woodland Indian Arts Emergency Relief Fund to support individual Native American artists experiencing economic distress as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Grant funding may be used for basic expenses such as food, rent, medical costs, childcare, etc., or artistic supplies and materials, including those related to the development of skills or equipment that will enable applicants to transition their income-generating practices to virtual platforms or practices.
The deadline to apply is January 28, 2021. Click HERE for eligibility requirements and to apply.
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To Protect Great Lakes, Tribes
Oppose Enbridge Line 5 Pipelines
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By Mike Ludwig
Mike Ludwig talks to Whitney Gravelle, an attorney for the Bay Mills Indian Community, about the fight against Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline.
TRANSCRIPT
Note: This a rush transcript and has been lightly edited for clarity. Copy may not be in its final form.
Mike Ludwig: Welcome to Climate Front Lines, the podcast exploring the people and places on the front lines of the climate crisis. My name is Mike Ludwig. I’m a reporter for Truthout.org. President-elect Joe Biden announced this week that former environmental protection agency administrator Gina McCarthy will serve as his top climate advisor.
The actions from environmentalists have been mixed to say the least on one hand McCarthy was the EPA administrator during the Obama administration. When regulators attempted to put caps on the energy sector’s greenhouse gas emissions for the first time, of course, the Trump administration crushed all these efforts and then some, and on the other hand, McCarthy was EPA administrator during the Obama administration.
When the word fracking became a household term for years, fracking opponents accused the EPA under Obama and McCarthy of suppressing research. Showing that fracking for oil and gas is a threat to drinking water. Still fracking caused an explosion of fossil fuel production across the U.S., and Canada was pushing to export more oil and gas at the same time.
All of these fossil fuels needed places to go in ways to get there and suddenly fights against new oil and gas pipelines erupted across the nation. The Keystone XL pipeline, for example, became a political hot potato under president Obama as tribal governments and environmental activists launched fierce campaigns against the project.
During the last days of the Obama administration. Law enforcement moved to crush the uprising at standing rock where the standing rock, Sioux tribe and other indigenous led activists resisted the Dakota access pipeline for months and drew international attention to the legacy of colonialism in the Americas.
Activists continue to take direct action to stop oil and gas pipelines under President Trump, who made it clear that the fossil fuel industry had a friend in the White House. Those days are coming to an end, the campaigns to prevent the industry from establishing new infrastructure and locking in decades of fossil fuel production will continue under president Biden.
Like other struggles on the front lines of climate change, many of these campaigns are led by indigenous activists. One such campaign can be found in Northern Michigan where the Canadian firm Enbridge wants to extend the life of line five to underwater oil and gas pipelines that have operated for decades in the straits of Mackinac, the narrow body of water between Michigan’s lower and upper peninsula. In 2018, a ship’s anchor struck line five causing damage and alarming the public lion five runs under what it’s essentially headwaters for much of the great lakes and oil spill in this region could spell disaster for ecosystems and fresh water supplies. Enbridge wants to build a quote unquote tunnel over line five so the pipelines can continue operating for years to come.
But the company is facing opposition from a coalition of tribal governments, along with Michigan’s democratic governor Gretchen Whitmer. To learn more, I spoke with Whitney Gravelle, an attorney for the Bay Mills Indian community, a Northern Michigan tribe that has fished the waters flowing above Line 5 for generations.
Whitney Gravelle: So Bay Mills Indian community is a federally recognized Indian tribe located in the upper peninsula of Michigan. So we’re in the Northern most part of the state. Um, and as I mentioned earlier, uh, closer to Canada than the rest of the state, but we have been here since time immemorial.
So this is where the Aboriginal people of the Bay Mills Indian community, Ojibwe Anishinaabe, have always resided and lived and been a part of the environment and culture here within the state of Michigan.
Click HERE to read and listen to the full interview.
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USDA to Open Signup for Conservation Reserve Program and CRP Grasslands in Early 2021 |
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced the 2021 signup periods for general Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and CRP Grasslands offers. General signup for CRP will be open from January 4, 2021 to February 12, 2021; signup for CRP Grasslands runs from March 15, 2021 to April 23, 2021. Both programs are competitive and provide annual rental payments for land devoted to conservation purposes.
“The Conservation Reserve Program and the many focused programs that come under it, like CRP Grasslands, are some of our most critical tools we have to help producers better manage their operations while conserving natural resources,” said State Executive Director, Sandy Chalmers. “As one of our nation’s largest conservation endeavors, CRP has proven to protect our Nation’s valuable resources; and next year’s signup gives our farmers and ranchers an opportunity to enroll in CRP for the first time or continue their participation for another term.
Click HERE to learn more.
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WisDOT Entry Transportation Specialist Openings |
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Join the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) team and help shape the future of the State of Wisconsin's transportation infrastructure!
Graduating December 2020 through May 2021? APPLY!
WisDOT is recruiting to fill entry and senior level Transportation Specialist positions located in the Division of Transportation System Development (DTSD) offices throughout the State: Central Office Bureaus positions located in Madison, the Southeast (SE) Region, headquartered in Waukesha; the Southwest (SW) Region, headquartered in LaCrosse or Madison; the Northwest Region (NW) with offices in Superior, Spooner and Eau Claire; the North Central ( NC) Region - offices in Rhinelander and Wisconsin Rapids and the Northeast (NE) Region in Green Bay!
WisDOT is a great place to work. We offer amazing benefits that include a casual office atmosphere, flexible work schedules, ample vacation time, excellent health benefits, and an exceptional employee assistance program that offers a variety of programs and tools to help promote an employee's wellness and health.
Positions are responsible for performing transportation specialist entry or senior level duties and applying engineering practices and principles for multi-modal transportation programs. Positions will work in one of the department’s engineering program areas that may include: Utilities, Design, Construction, Plans Production, Soils, Planning, Traffic and Maintenance of transportation facilities in addition to other areas of focus.
NOTE: Interviews will be conducted virtually. In efforts to keep our employees safe and healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as to ensure adherence to CDC and local government requirements and business needs, the individual hired into this position may temporarily be permitted or required to work from home.
Click HERE to learn more about the position and to apply.
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Interested in upcoming events?
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Red Cliff Tribal Administration Office
88455 Pike Road
Bayfield, Wi. 54814
715-779-3700
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