Update: On June 30, 2016 a judge granted Rural Water District 3’s motion to dismiss, but gave the State of Oklahoma 20 days to amend its petition. The State of Oklahoma continues to try to disable the operations of Pottawatomie County Rural Water District 3. A recent lawsuit filed by State Attorney General Scott Pruitt claims RWD3 no longer exists Read More »

The state’s monarch butterflies have several new partners working for their benefit as seven Native American tribes, the Euchee Butterfly Farm and the University of Kansas’ Monarch Watch work to restore their habitats in Oklahoma. “We’re looking to build up their habitats in our Pottawatomie County community, which are along their migration path from Central Mexico to the Great Lakes,” explained Kelli Mosteller, Ph.D., of the Read More »

In May 2013, a series of deadly tornadoes ripped through parts of Oklahoma, leaving areas of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation tribal jurisdiction devastated. A mobile home park approximately one mile south of the Grand Casino Hotel Resort took a direct hit, with numerous injuries and two deaths. The communities of Pink and Little Axe, home to tribal members and employees alike, also suffered damage from the twisters. Read More »

Out of the millions of test-takers nationwide, fewer than seven-hundredths of a percent (0.07 percent) of students who take the ACT receive a perfect score. One local Oklahoma student who attended a Citizen Potawatomi Nation-sponsored education program recently joined this elite club. Choctaw High School junior Joshua Crouch scored 36 out of 36 on the ACT with assistance from the Johnson O’Malley grant and CPN education programs. Read More »

Saturday night during Festival isn’t the only time you can hear the beating of the drum. Friday night has a tradition all its own with a different kind of movement to the beat. Traditional hand games are played the first night of Festival and participants jiggle and jive throughout the event. The hand games are a traditional Potawatomi game played between different families and friends with wagers Read More »

Indian nations have historically been international actors and a part of the world community of sovereign nations, and this is shown by their treaties with the United States and other nations. Today, tribes are seeking to rejoin the international community in order to protect their lands, sovereignty, and cultures, and to benefit their communities, according to experts who spoke at the “Indian Nations in the United Read More »

If you have received a tribal scholarship recently, I’m sure you are extremely grateful for the financial relief it provides. If you’re lucky, you might have encountered the band of devoted employees behind each check. Charles Clark, Spring Cleveland and Kristen McGirt in the CPN Tribal Rolls Department have demonstrated incredible patience and attention to detail as they processed endless applications for tribal olls scholarships. At the Read More »

Often seen as the penultimate event of the CPN Family Reunion Festival, the Citizen Potawatomi Powwow draws participants and audience members alike to the dance arena after a long two days of activities. Though it may appear free flowing for a first time viewer, the dances and structure of the event builds on hundreds of years of traditions for Native American ceremonial celebrations. All Citizen Read More »

CPN’s progress on new construction and upgrades to existing facilities will be on full display at Festival 2016. From FireLake Wellness Center to FireLake Express Grocery’s newest location, the development of tribal facilities continues to grow. FireLake Golf Course is undergoing a full renovation. The back nine greens have been elevated and a new drainage system was installed to relieve the stagnant water issue in many of Read More »

This year at Festival we will have two games of shishibe or Potawatomi Bingo. This was a hit last year so we are going to play games on Friday at 5 p.m. and Saturday at noon. We will also be having a children’s Potawatomi language class at 2 p.m. on Saturday and an immersion Potawatomi class at 10 a.m. on Saturday. We hope you will Read More »