Cook Inlet Housing Authority Organizes Easter Visit

The children of Strawberry Village Cottages celebrated Easter a little early this year with a party and egg hunt sponsored by Cook Inlet Housing Authority. Some 20 resident kids, ranging in age from just a few months to early teens, gathered with Cook Inlet Housing Authority staff and their parents in the Strawberry Village community room to play party games like “pin the nose on the bunny” and musical chairs. Dozens of plastic eggs filled with goodies were hidden throughout the community, and the fruits of their treasure hunt were shared by all. Two-year-old Savannah Pese (above) rummaged through her own basket and a neighbor’s too.

Funding Available for Post Secondary Education

Supplemental funding is available for CIRI shareholders and descendants pursuing accredited post secondary education through Cook Inlet Tribal Council’s Tribal Grants and Scholarships program. The deadline to apply for fall funding is June 30, 2003.

Cook Inlet Tribal Council administers both the Tribal Higher Education and Alyeska Match Scholarships. Only complete applications are considered and awards are based on the availability of funds. Students are required to submit a copy of their Certificate Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB) from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. If the CDIB reflects that the student’s village is Kenai, Knik, Ninilchik, Salamatof or Tyonek, they must apply directly to their village. These villages have opted to administer their own Bureau of Indian Affairs-funded higher education programs.

The Alyeska Match Scholarship offers matching financial assistance to Alaska Natives who are interested in seeking college or vocational training that will enable them to work on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. This scholarship is offered as part of Section 29, in the Grant Right of Way federal law. This law recognizes that Alaska Native landowners must be compensated for land use and occupancy by the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. In both 1974 and 1995, Alaska Natives opted for jobs and job training opportunities on the Pipeline to fulfill the Right of Way agreement.

Both the Tribal Higher Education and Alyeska Match Scholarships are intended for full-time students, and neither has residency restrictions. Eligible students may apply for both programs. Both scholarships require that the student apply for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). It can take four to six weeks for the U.S. Department of Education to process and respond to these applications, so now is a good time to apply. Adult males between the ages of 18 and 25 must also document proof of registration into the Selective Service.

The Tribal Grants and Scholarships office is located within The CIRI Foundation’s office at 2600 Cordova Street, Suite 206. The applications are available on line at www.citci.com/departments and /tcf/financial_aid.html. To request a mailed or faxed application, contact Jorie Zilys, Tribal Grants and Vocational Counselor, at (907) 265-5904, (877) 985-5900, or jzilys@citci.com.

Koahnic Builds
Native Program Fund

Koahnic Broadcast Corporation’s efforts to build the Native Program Fund got a big boost recently from attendees at Koahnic’s Eighth Annual Alaska Native Art Auction. At the event, ConocoPhillips Alaska President Kevin Meyers challenged those in attendance to contribute to the fund using a $25,000 matching grant from ConocoPhillips as an incentive.

The result was that the fund will see a new investment of $129,000 – bringing the total Native Program Fund balance close to $400,000. Responding to the ConocoPhillips Alaska challenge during the auction were Alaska Communications Systems; Alaska Interstate Construction; Arctic Slope Regional Corp.; Barbara Donatelli; Bernie Smith; Birch Horton Bittner and Cherot; BP; Brady & Company; Calista Corp.; Char Stephan; Cindy Meddlesadt and Mark Huber; CIRI Alaska Tourism; Cook Inlet Tribal Council; Dennis and Kristin Mellinger; Doyon, Ltd.; Gail Shubert; Gloria O’Neil; Joy and Carl Marrs; Mark and Leslie Kroloff; Nancy Miles; Susan Anderson and Kevin Tripp; Teresa Nelson; and Wesley and Lisa Nason of Stems.

Koahnic’s Native radio series Native America Calling, National Native News, and Earthsongs serve many rural and tribal radio stations that cannot afford to pay fees to offset the costs of producing these programs. The programs have been sustained over the years by private grants and by contributions from business underwriters – sources of revenue that have limited life spans. For the past two years, Koahnic has been raising funds for a permanent endowment to insure the long-term financial stability of its Native American radio programming. To make a contribution to the Native Program Fund, please call Koahnic at (907) 258-8890.

CIRI Shareholder Relations to Implement Phone Tree

Julie Petro Lowndes
Binoculars

John Oohkie Okie Jr.
CIRI Pendleton blanket

Meda Bella Sarren



The CIRI Shareholder Relations Department is expecting to implement a phone tree of services for shareholder use by the end of May. The phone tree is designed to expedite shareholder calls by providing answers to routine questions, as well as serve shareholders 24 hours a day - an added bonus for shareholders living outside Alaska and not able to contact Shareholder Relations during the normal 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Alaska business day.

The phone tree will work by offering shareholders a “menu” to choose from when contacting CIRI and being transferred to the Shareholder Relation phone tree. Menu offerings will include:
• Answers to questions about how to update a mailing address or change a name on CIRI stock records;
• Information regarding the date and amount of the next dividend payment;
• Answers to questions about direct deposit, and what to do if a dividend check is misplaced, or is believed to have been lost in the mail or stolen;
• Information regarding how to report the death of a shareholder, and answers to questions pertaining to unsettled estates; and
• Information on stock gifting.

After the caller makes a selection, they will hear a second set of menu options. For instance, if a caller selects the “gifting” option, they will then be offered a choice of listening to either a brief explanation of whom they can gift shares to, or finding out how to proceed with making a gift of shares.

Callers will also have the option of speaking to a Shareholder Relations representative throughout the phone tree menu, during regular 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Alaska business hours.

Implementation of the phone tree is designed to enhance the efficiency of the Shareholder Relations Department to process record changes, reduce costs, and, ultimately, better serve CIRI shareholders.