Past News Items

Washington, D.C. -- Commissioner Louis R. Bruce of the U. S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs has been presented a copy of the Southern Ute A Tribal History" by members of the Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado, the group responsible for the writing of this unique book. The presentation took place last week in the Commissioner's Office.

ELECTRONICS COMPANY TO TRAIN CROW INDIANS

The newly established U. S. Automatics Corporation plant on the Crow Reservation in Montana has negotiated a $17,475 contract with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to provide on-the-job training for 35 Crow Indians. The company, which has home offices in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, manufactures electronic components, mainly timing and regulating devices.

BOAT BUILDER TO LOCATE IN PRYOR. OKLAHOMA

WASHINGTON – The Department of the Interior today announced that an additional $4.8 million has been transferred to the Cobell Education Scholarship Fund (Scholarship Fund), bringing the total amount contributed so far to almost $39 million. The Scholarship Fund – funded in part by the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations (Buy-Back Program) and authorized by the Cobell Settlement – provides financial assistance through scholarships to American Indian and Alaska Native students wishing to pursue post-secondary and graduate education and training.

Reaffirming the administration's commitment to what President Nixon described as "a new era in which the future for American Indians is determined by Indian acts and Indian decisions," Secretary of the'" Interior Rogers C. B. Morton highlighted recent accomplishments in achieving Indian self-determination before the National Tribal Chairmen's Association at Eugene, Oregon Monday.

He applauded the efforts of the emerging Indian leadership. "They are leading the American Indian into a self-determined age. America's Indian tribes are awakening and on the move," he said.

New school facilities in 17 Indian communities of eight States are being opened this fall by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, according to Secretary of the Interior Stewart L. Udall.

They include 11 new schools and three additions to existing schools--enough to accommodate nearly 6,000 students, mostly in the elementary grades. Three dormitories, built to house more than 1,300 Indian youths who live too far away for commuting, also were completed in time for the fall season.

Funding Opportunity Part of Bureau of Indian Education’s implementation of American Indian Education Study Group’s “Blueprint for Reform;” Sovereignty in Indian Education grants will promote tribal self-determination in education through tribal control of BIE-funded schools

The proposed rule of the Northwestern Band of Shoshone Indians one of the three participant groups which will share a $15.7 million judgment awarded the tribe by the Indian Claims Commission and being distributed pursuant to the Act of December 18, 1971 was published in the Federal Register May 17, 1972. Commissioner of Indian Affairs Louis R. Bruce made the announcement today. Regulations to govern preparation of the roll were published April 21, 1972.

SALT RIVER INDIANS LEASE SCOTTSDALE AREA TRACT

A group of Salt River Reservation Indians anticipates an annual income of $400 per acre from a 156-acre tract recently leased to the Arizona Stable Development Company. The lease runs for 25 years, with an additional 25-year option. The tract, composed of eight allotments and leased as a unit, lies immediately south of the Indian Bend Golf Course near Scottsdale, Arizona.

I was saddened to learn of the passing of Billy Frank, Jr. – Chairman of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission and a member of the Nisqually Indian Tribe. Billy fought for treaty rights to fish the waters of the Pacific Northwest, a battle he finally won in 1974 after being arrested many times during tribal “fish-ins”. Today, thanks to his courage and determined effort, our resources are better protected, and more tribes are able to enjoy the rights preserved for them more than a century ago.

The proposed regulations for preparing a roll of Alaska Natives eligible to share in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of December 18, 1971, were issued today by Secretary of the Interior Rogers C. B. Morton.

Louis R. Bruce, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, pointed out that the Native Claims Act provides for settlement of awards totaling $962.5 million and 40 million acres of land, and ends a struggle which had been pending since the United States purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867.

"Alaska Natives" who may be eligible for enrollment must be: