Past News Items

The Navajo Indian Tribe and the Bureau of Indian Affairs of the Department of the Interior are working closely together to meet all emergency needs resulting from the recent heavy snows and extremely cold weather on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Philleo Nash reported today.

Appointment of Dr. James E. Officer of Tucson, Arizona, as Associate Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs was announced today by Secretary of the Interior Stewart L. Udall.

Dr. Officer, who was instructor in sociology and anthropology and assistant director of the Bureau of Ethnic Research at the University of Arizona from 1955 to early 1961, served as a member of the task force which was appointed by the Secretary to survey the operations and programs of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

President Kennedy today nominated Philleo Nash, former lieutenant governor of Wisconsin, as Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and simultaneously, Secretary of the Interior Stewart L. Udall announced appointment of John O. Crow, Cherokee Indian and 28-year veteran of the Indian Bureau, as Deputy Commissioner.

For the past six months Nash has been a member of the Indian Affairs Task Force, named by Secretary Udall, and has been a special assistant to Assistant Secretary John A. Carver, Jr., and Crow has been Acting Commissioner of the Bureau.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs has awarded the first negotiated contract for the supplying of equipment which had been earmarked for an area of substantial labor surplus, Secretary of the Interior Stewart L. Udall announced today.

The contract is for three motor graders which will be used by the Bureau's Branch of Roads in the Aberdeen, South Dakota and Phoenix, Arizona areas. It was awarded to The Galion Iron Works and Mfg. Co., Galion, Ohio, for the sum of $36,033.

The Department of the Interior today announced the award of a $976,677.84 contract for construction of 18 miles of roadway on Navajo Route 1, starting approximately 38 miles west of Shiprock, New Mexico, and running westerly to Walker Creek, Arizona.

WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs Tara Sweeney announced today that the Department of the Interior has signed agreements with the Oglala Sioux Tribe of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, the Northern Cheyenne Tribe of the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation in Montana, and the Santee Sioux Nation of the Santee Sioux Reservation in Nebraska to guide implementation of the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations at each of these reservations.

I have looked forward to this day -- to the chance to meet with you, to share in your 25th Anniversary celebration, to congratulate you - and especially your charter members, some of whom are here today -- for your vision and leadership.

An impressive as your past growth has been, even more impressive are the prospects for your contributions to the Indian future. As never before, the nation is aware of Indian problems and the need for clear, decisive Indian leadership.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Eight federally recognized tribes will collectively receive nearly $2.5 million in grant awards from the U.S. Departments of Education and Interior to bolster their educational programs and advance self-determination goals through the development of academically rigorous and culturally relevant programs.

A White Mountain Apache tribal delegation from Arizona will arrive in Washington Saturday, December 11, poised for a full week of activities prior to the official Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony slated for next Friday.

The five-member delegation, representing the Tribe which donated the Nation's Christmas tree this year, will be composed of: Lester Oliver, Tribal Chairman; Fred Banashley, Vice-Chairman; Mary Enfield; Mary V. Riley; and Nelson Lupe, Sr.

WASHINGTON – Acting Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Lawrence S. Roberts announced today the availability of approximately $9.1 million for three funding opportunities for federally recognized Indian tribes, Alaska Native villages, Alaska Native regional or village corporations, authorized tribal organizations, and Tribal Energy Resource Development Organizations.