The Citizen Potawatomi Nation Potawatomi Leadership Program brings together a cohort of eight to 10 young Tribal members for a six-week summer internship designed to help students discover meaningful connections with their family and history. This year’s PLP is scheduled for Friday, June 10, 2022, to Saturday, July 23, 2022. Applications are open through April 1, 2022, at plp.potawatomi.org.
March is National Nutrition Month, and it presents the opportunity to reconsider what constitutes a healthy diet and bodily well-being on a wider level. The Hownikan spoke with CPN’s Women, Infants and Children program about advice and resources for pregnant and breastfeeding mothers; a Tribal member who, as a chef, works to offer nutritious foods in a restaurant setting; and the CPN Title VI Program, which offers elders options while meeting new nutritional needs that come with age.
This episode discusses the effects of Medicaid expansion on Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Services, visits a crafting class at CPN’s Cultural Heritage Center and provides tips and tricks for credit scores for National Credit Education Month.
The Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation works to finance, promote, educate, and inspire the entrepreneurial growth, economic opportunity and financial well-being of underserved Native populations. Cindy Logsdon, CPCDC CEO writes about how her team works to help people move forward in life, which benefits all Oklahomans by creating strong families and communities.
Each year, AARP awards Native American elders for their contributions to the improvement of their tribes and communities. Citizen Potawatomi Nation member and Emergency Management Department Director Tim Zientek was chosen in 2021 as one of 47 elders recognized for his “achievements, community service and impact,” according to the organization.
Oklahoma voters narrowly approved the expansion of Medicaid eligibility in June 2020, helping thousands of previously uninsured residents qualify for health coverage through the Affordable Care Act. Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Services officials are ready to ensure new patients efficiently receive services and CPNHS can cost-effectively administer care. Apply for Medicaid at mysoonercare.org or by phone at 800-987-7767. Benefits specialists at the CPN clinics are also available to assist with enrollment.
In September 2021, CPN introduced him as the head coach of one of TBL’s newest expansion teams, the Potawatomi Fire: Derrick Rowland, who most recently coached TBL’s Albany (New York) Patroons. Along with helping the next generation of players develop both personally and professionally, Rowland is excited about the chance to represent something even bigger: pride in Indigenous identity. The Fire are the first professional sports team to be owned by a tribal nation in Oklahoma.
CPN Behavioral Health will build a new clinical building thanks to a grant from the U.S. Indian Health Service. The current clinic is 4,300 square feet with care provided by eight professional staff, including one psychiatrist, three psychologists and five counselors. The new building is expected to house more providers, therapy rooms, a larger space for group therapy and a planned observation deck.
CPN Language Department Director Justin Neely gives a language update for February 2022 which discusses course work at Shawnee Middle School and teaching at the CPN Child development center.
February 2022 is the 155th anniversary of the Treaty of 1867, the last of several treaties that the Citizen Potawatomi signed with the U.S. federal government. This treaty was the final push for the first Citizen Potawatomi families to move from Kansas to Indian Territory. The U.S. Government officially ended treaty negotiations with Native American tribes in 1871.