NEWS YOU CAN USE
CIRI Shareholders Offered 30% Tourism Discounts


CIRI shareholders receive a 30 percent discount on CIRI Alaska Tourism products, subject to space availability. CIRI Alaska Tourism operates the following businesses:

  • Anchorage RV Park

  • Kenai Fjords Tours out of Seward

  • Seward Windsong Lodge

  • Prince William Sound Cruises & Tours out of Whittier
    and Valdez

  • Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge

For more information or to make reservations, contact the
CIRI Alaska Tourism reservation center and mention you are a
CIRI shareholder.

Alaska Heritage Tours
(877) 258-6877 toll-free
(907) 265-4500 in Anchorage
(907) 263-5559 fax
e-mail: info@AHTours.com
www.ahtours.com

Carl Marrs Addresses Sheldon Jackson Students

CIRI President and Chief Executive Officer Carl Marrs was asked to deliver the commencement speech for 33 Sheldon Jackson College students who graduated on May 10, 2002, in Sitka, Alaska.

A private, four-year liberal arts college, Sheldon Jackson College first opened its doors in 1878 and is the oldest educational institution in continuous existence in Alaska. Presbyterian missionaries John G. Brady, who later served as governor of Alaska, and Fannie Kellogg opened an upper floor of an old military barracks as a training school for Tlingit Indians.

 

Today, the college remains committed to serving the needs of the Alaska Native community, with initiatives ranging from a teacher education program that prepares students to teach in rural Alaska, to the Alaska Native Studies Center, guided by Dennis Demmert, that brings Alaska Native cultures and perspectives into the curriculum.

Promoting education is a personal mission of Marrs. He congratulated the graduates for their hard work and perseverance for staying in school. He was especially honored to speak at Sheldon Jackson College because of the school's commitment to teamwork and cooperation with the rural and Native peoples of Alaska.

"If you want to get ahead, your hard work at Sheldon Jackson College is just the start of a long path of hard work that will continue into the future. The degrees that you have earned here are a very good start down that path," Marrs said. "This is a very proud day in my career. I am honored to address the Sheldon Jackson College class of 2002."

Publication Will List 'Our Friends'

By CIRI Historian Alexandra J. McClanahan

Alaska Native corporations and tribal organizations will be featured in a new directory that is being developed for publication by The CIRI Foundation. It will be called "Na'eda," which in Dena'ina Athabascan means "our friends."

The book, by CIRI Historian Alexandra J. McClanahan and CIRI intern Hallie Bissett, is aimed at being the most up-to-date and comprehensive listing of Native entities available. Addresses and phone numbers will be included for the 13 Native regional corporations, 168 village corporations, 226 traditional/IRA councils, four urban corporations, six former reserves and Alaska's only reservation, Metlakatla. Also listed will be the 13 major regional non-profits and the 13 members of the Alaska Native Education Consortium.

The five by seven inch book will also list the addresses and phone numbers of the 444 Native entities. The book will feature a brief discussion of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971 and its key components, as well as brief descriptions of the various Alaska Native ethnic groups. Maps will be included for each region to show village locations, and there will also be statewide Native cultural and Native regional maps.

"Our goal is to combine maps, a basic primer on Native issues surrounding ANCSA and a directory to create a handy booklet that's transportable," said Susan Anderson, president and chief executive officer of The CIRI Foundation. "We believe this could be useful to people in the Native community, and other residents and visitors."

The University of Alaska Anchorage's Kenai Peninsula College anthropology professor Alan Boraas suggested the title. He has taught a Dena'ina language and mythology class since 1988, first with Peter Kalifornsky and later with Donita Peter from Tyonek. Together with James Kari, he edited "A Dena'ina Legacy K'tl'egh'i Sukdu, The Collected Writings of Peter Kalifornsky."

Alberta Stephan, an Eklutna elder who is fluent in the Upper Cook Inlet Dena'ina dialect, suggested the spelling for "na'eda." She said the apostrophe indicates that the phrase includes two words.

Bissett has been gathering data regarding Alaska Native entities in her part-time work with CIRI over the last three years. Information will be presented with several cross-references so that entities can be easily accessed by the name of the village or by the corporation or tribal name.

For more information about "Na'eda," contact The CIRI Foundation at (907) 263-5582 or visit www.ciri.com/tcf.

Northwest Native Center Proposed
Alaska Natives living in the Pacific Northwest are considering building a community center in the Seattle area to serve all Alaska Natives and their descendants. The center would be available for Alaska Natives to use and would provide a central location with such resources as health care and education information. The center would also provide support for culturally diverse activities in part to create employment opportunities and offer a venue for the sale of arts and crafts. Anyone interested in participating in the planning and development of the Northwest Native Center is encouraged to email Bob Berntsen at nwnativecenter@aol.com or call him in Seattle at (206) 938-8455.

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