Rod Van Mechelen: A report from GOP convention (September 3, 2004)

"President Bush has reaffirmed tribal sovereignty several times, including in the Native American Heritage Proclamations of 2001-03. His administration has provided more than $1.1 billion for school construction and repairs. His 2005 budget requests $3.7 billion for Indian Health Service,...

Native college students show dramatic gains on SAT (September 3, 2004)

American Indian and Alaska Native students have shown record improvement on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) for college admission, according to statistics released this week. Results of this year's SAT showed that Native students improved their scores on the verbal...

Norton intervened in Native corporation-park dispute (September 3, 2004)

An Alaska Native corporation with friends in high places was moving to dismantle a fish camp deemed illegal by a federal appeals court until Interior Secretary Gale Norton intervened, The Anchorage Daily News reports. Cook Inlet Region Inc. uses the...

Ponca chief design a finalist for Nebraska quarter (September 3, 2004)

A Ponca chief who refused to be removed from his homeland could appear on Nebraska's commemorative quarter. A design featuring Chief Standing Bear, Chimney Rock and the state Capitol was among the five finalists selected by the Nebraska quarter committee...

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe presses recognition bid (September 3, 2004)

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts is renewing its push to gain federal recognition. The tribe applied for recognition in the 1980s and completed its petition in 1990. The tribe is first on the Bureau of Indian Affairs' "ready" list....

Men want Tigua Tribe to reimburse medical bills (September 3, 2004)

Two men who say they were assaulted by the Tigua Tribe's security guards want the tribe to pay for their medical treatment. The men say they were hurt by the guards after leaving the tribe's casino. The guards mistakenly thought...

Direct Service Tribes discuss health care needs (September 3, 2004)

The Direct Service Tribes are meeting with the Indian Health Service this week in South Dakota. The two-day meeting is attended by representatives of tribes with treaty-based health care rights. They discussed health care issues with IHS officials from nine...

Treaty rights referred to Virginia Supreme Court (September 3, 2004)

The Virginia Supreme Court has been asked to resolve a treaty rights dispute involving the Mattaponi Tribe and the construction of a reservoir. The tribe says the reservoir violates a 1677 treaty signed with the king of England. The tribe,...

Federal grant to help principal training program (September 3, 2004)

The American Indian Leadership Program at Pennsylvania State University has received a $1 million federal grant to train Indian students who wish to become principals. AILP director John W. Tippeconnic said the grant will fund a two-year program to prepare...

Family seeks answers for death of Fond du Lac woman (September 3, 2004)

The family of Trina Langenbrunner will hold a vigil today on the Fond du Lac Ojibwe Reservation in Minnesota to mark the unsolved murder of the mother of three. Langenbrunner, a tribal member, was found stabbed to death on on...

Leech Lake teen sentenced for brutal beating death (September 3, 2004)

A 18-year-old from the Leech Lake Ojibwe Reservation in Minnesota was sentenced to 26 years in prison for the brutal beating death of a legally blind man. Jesse Royal Tapio was 16 at the time of Darrell Bisson's death. Tapio...

Winnebago Tribe breaks ground on college building (September 3, 2004)

The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska broke ground on Thursday for a new liberal arts building at Little Priest Tribal College. The 8,000-square-foot building will have three state-of-the-art classrooms with technology for distance learning. The facility will also include a lecture...

Blackfeet/Cree drum group takes top honors (September 3, 2004)

The Blackfeet Nation of Montana gave a hero's welcome to five tribal members whose drum group took top honors at the Schemitzun pow-wow. High Noon won a total of $50,000 in prizes at the pow-wow, held last weekend on the...

Hurricane forces evacuation of Seminole reservation (September 3, 2004)

Hurricane Frances has forced the evacuation of the Seminole Tribe's Brighton Reservation in Florida. Elderly members have been transported to the tribe's casino in Tampa while other residents are staying at the hurricane shelter on the reservation or have gone...

Coeur d’Alene Tribe to build new health facility (September 3, 2004)

The Coeur d’Alene Tribe of Idaho is planning a $15 million health-care facility to expand medical services on the reservation. The new facility would replace the Benewah Medical Center, which has about 120 employees and serves more than 6,500 patients....

Father of missing Native girl pleads guilty to assault (September 3, 2004)

The father of five-year-old Native girl who has been missing for two months pleaded guilty to assaulting his pregnant girlfriend. Troy Keepness says he has been under a lot of stress since daughter Tamra Keepness disappeared. He faces more charges...

Wrongful death suit planned in police shooting of teen (September 3, 2004)

The family of a 17-year-old teen who was shot to death by a police officer on the Walker River Paiute Reservation in Nevada is planning to file a wrongful death suit. Norman Boney Jr. allegedly charged an officer who responded...

First Nation imposes own penalties on drug trade (September 3, 2004)

The Fisher River First Nation in Manitoba is hoping new laws will stem the local drug problem. The band recently enacted tougher penalties for people who make, sell or possess narcotics. Punishments include fines, jail time, loss of tribal services...

First Nations seek probe into mercury poisoning (September 3, 2004)

The leaders of two First Nations in Ontario are seeking a public inquiry into mercury poisoning on their reserves. The White Dog First Nation and Grassy Narrows First Nation brought in an international health expert to study mercury levels. A...

Crow chairman promotes record ahead of election (September 3, 2004)

The chairman of the Crow Tribe of Montana is touting his record on housing and economic development in hopes of getting re-elected. Chairman Carl Venne cited $1 million in Housing and Urban Development funding, down payments for potential homebuyers, oil...

Sac and Fox Nation helps get road project off ground (September 3, 2004)

Officials in Oklahoma are crediting the Sac and Fox Nation with helping get a long-delayed road project off the ground. Officials in Shawnee tried to get state funding to widen a portion of a state highway that was prone to...