Groundbreaking Held for Red Lake Nation College and Government Center

As if on cue, Migizi (bald eagle) soared overhead as the groundbreaking for the new Red Lake Nation Tribal College and Tribal Government Center began on Thursday, July 25, 2013. The site is just north (toward the lake) from the powwow ring near the Humanities/Recreation Center in the community of Red Lake.

At about 11:15 a.m., emcee Eugene "Bugger" McArthur, Director of Development for the college, happily addressed perhaps 500 people in attendance, some seated at tables, others standing to the rear. "This is truly a historic event," said McArthur, "it's wonderful to see so many friends from other tribes and friends from Bemidji."

After an Opening Prayer by Spiritual Elder Eugene Stillday, and an Honor song by the Red Lake Nation College Drum, McArthur recognized honored guests and elected officials.

First McArthur introduced the Red Lake Tribal Council and Hereditary Chiefs, followed by USDA State and Regional staff, and staff from DSGW Architects. Also in attendance were representatives from the offices of US Senators Franken and Klobuchar, Congressman Collin Peterson, and State Senator Rod Skoe himself.

Next to be introduced were Beltrami County Officials. They included County Commissioners Tim Sumner and Richard Anderson, County Administrator Kay Mack, County Attorney Tim Faver, and Sheriff Phil Hodapp.

"Here at Red Lake we pride ourselves on our history, our culture, and our land," said Red Lake Chairman Floyd Jourdain, Jr., in his opening remarks. "It's really a good feeling to stand here and see our brother the eagle, our inspiration, circling above. That's always a good sign for Anishinaabe people."

"When we use the word historic, it is not used lightly," said Jourdain. "Our priority is to keep our culture and tradition, otherwise we would cease to exist. We are investing in the future."

"We can build square boxes, we can make more policies and rules, teach the three Rs of education, but unless we incorporate our Anishinaabe identity into that, then as a people, over time, we will cease to exist," said Jourdain. "That's our priority, just as our ancestors!"

After short comments from Red Lake Tribal Secretary Donald Cook and Tribal Treasurer Darrell G. Seki, Sr., McArthur introduced USDA Rural Development State Director, Colleen Landkamer.

"I am so pleased to be a part of this, what a joy it is to work with Red Lake, said Landkamer. “Rural Development is proud of its partnership with the Red Lake Tribe. The staff in our Bemidji and Detroit Lakes offices have put in a lot of hours working with tribal leaders over the last couple of years and the results are at hand.”

"This is all about the future; investing in the future," said Landkamer. "The leadership you have shown as a tribal nation, working together, and solving challenges is resulting in the building of these wonderful facilities and improving the pow-wow grounds. It is your future. It's everyone future."

"This is a great day for Red Lake Nation," said Dan King, President of Red Lake Nation College. There are obstacles to education for our members and this tribal college will give us a leg up. Our ancestors would be proud of us this day, building on the shores of and tapping the natural power of this sacred lake."

"We've talked about this for 30 years," King remembered, "and this tribal council got it done. They worked with the communities and the support was unanimous, wherever we went, in the Twin Cities, in Duluth, in all the communities, everybody supported this."

The new symbol filled campus will include moving the powwow grounds slightly and rebuilt to resemble a nest for the pair of migizi (bald eagle) shaped buildings. The College is to the West, the government center to the East. DSGW Architects of Duluth designed the twin buildings to look like soaring eagles. The construction will create 120 new jobs for 12 to 16 months.

"The Red Lake Nation capitol facilities were designed with powerful Eagle symbolism on the beautiful shores of Red Lake," notes King. "The twin College campus and Tribal Government center buildings’ eagle design symbolize the culture, strength, power and perseverance of Red Lake Nation."

The new college campus will feature state-of-the-art technology for shared distance learning with other Universities and Colleges. The campus will also contain a large, multi-purpose Student Union and hold 14 classrooms (up from the current three) that will include a biology lab, a chemistry lab and two computer labs.

The Tribal College will host a 5,330 square-foot library, tribal archives/library center, Ojibwe Language Center and an Ojibwe Language Immersion Head Start and Daycare Center for up to 60 children. Included also is a Student Café, Wellness and Fitness Center, and a Sweat Lodge to promote healthy lifestyles and strong cultural living. According to King, the college facilities will be open to the public.

In addition to the new buildings project, plans for the area include a new powwow grounds, walking trails along the lake, and a Veterans Park honoring all Red Lakers who have served in US Armed Forces. The park will feature black granite monuments for inscribing names of living and deceased service personnel with room for more names if the need arises.

"The Red Lake Nation College and new government center are the biggest things to happen on the Rez since Roger (Jourdain) brought in the Red Lake hospital," said Jourdain in an earlier statement. "It's a bigger deal than casinos because it's an investment in the future, an investment in people."

After another honor song, came the symbolic photo op of donning hard hats and tossing a shovel-full of dirt. First came the Council and Chiefs, followed by College staff, USDA members and architects, Red Lake tribal members, and then several family groups took photos with the shovels.

A meal of Red Lake Walleye was served after the ceremony prepared by the Red Lake Fisheries association. The groundbreaking was sponsored by the Red Lake Tribal Counsel and Red Lake Nation College.

Background

Earlier this year, US Rep. Collin Peterson announced that Red Lake Nation had been selected to receive over $21 million in loans from USDA Rural Development to build a tribal college and tribal government center. It included an $11,348,000 loan for the college and a $10,130,000 loan for the Government Center.

"The existing facilities at Red Lake have outlived their useful lives," Peterson said at the time. "Construction of these new buildings will help to create jobs in an area with high unemployment, and will be a source of pride for the Red Lake Nation."

Both loans come from Rural Development’s community facilities program, which finances essential buildings and equipment in rural areas.

The 42,000 square-foot Red Lake Nation College building.

The tribe currently holds classes in an old building, and is not yet, but will be accredited. The new building will increase educational and other opportunities.

With unemployment rates on the Red Lake reservation hovering in the 60% range, along with numerous social and health problems, Red Lake Tribal leadership feels that higher education is one of the best long-term solutions to community development.

"The remote, rural location of the Red Lake reservation creates a huge access barrier to higher education for Tribal Members living here," King said in an earlier interview. "Naturally, Tribal Members have the academic ability to attend and succeed in college, what they lack is the financial resources to overcome the barrier that the great distance creates. The high cost of transportation for a two-hour daily round trip, (to the nearest college) the cost of daycare, etc., presents a financial difficulty for many tribal members."

"If the Red Lake Tribal College were not open today, about 90% of the 130 students who started classes in the fall of 2012 would not be in college at all," King earlier explained. "That is how important this tribal college is to Red Lake families. The Tribal Council and Hereditary Chiefs realized that an on-reservation college will serve as a crucial bridge to higher education."

The motto for the Red Lake Nation College is “A Great Place to Start!”

It is hoped that tribal members after finishing a two-year degree at Red Lake College, will continue on to attain higher college degrees from four-year universities. Currently 95% of the students are Red Lake Tribal Members. However, once the new facilities are built, College leaders anticipate there will be higher percentages of non-members and non-Indian students from the surrounding area, who will want to attend. Red Lake Nation College is open to anyone and follows a strict non-discrimination policy.

Red Lake Tribal leaders have determined that higher education for its members will be a central part of the long-term Red Lake Nation community development plan.

Red Lake Tribal Government Center

A 27,400 square-foot tribal government center will be built simultaneously east of the college. The new center will provide a safer environment and allow the tribe to operate out of one central location. "The current council headquarters it is outdated and worthy of condemnation due to asbestos and a number of other issues," said Red Lake Chairman Floyd Jourdain, Jr., in an earlier statement.