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Welcome to your Indian Resource Speaker and Assembly
Resource page for Coos County teachers and their classrooms!
This page has been developed for local school teachers in Coos County
schools as an additional resource for them to provide additional positive
Indian resources for their students. In addition to the positive Indian
print, curriculum guides, films and videos available to teachers from
the six Indian Education Programs in each school district in Coos County,
Indian resource speakers and assemblies are also available through these
programs. The following list of approved, positive Indian Resource Speakers
and Indian assemblies can be scheduled by calling Jim Thornton, Coos County
Indian Education Coordinator at 888-4584. Please allow at least two weeks
in advance for scheduling our busy Indian Resource Speakers and assembly
participants since many must schedule their time between work and other
presentations in our schools. Also, some presentations require materials
that must be assembled for students.
Teachers will be asked to fill out an evaluation form
at the conclusion of each presentation so that we have continuous feedback
on our speakers and assembly resources. Funds for these presentations
are made available through Federal Title IX-Indian Education funds through
the individual school districts and their Indian Education Parent Committees.
The following list has been approved for the current
school year. If you do not see a specific subject area that you would
like to include in a local classroom, please call Jim to see if we can
provide the appropriate resource.
Indian Resource Speakers:
Delores Caldwell (Apache) is available in her
North Bend School District's Indian Education Program on a wide range
of various Indian subject presentations. Delores has been the North Bend
Indian Education Project Director in her schools for over twenty years,
and is also a performing member of MOTHER EARTH'S CHILDREN (Who can forget
her Grizzly Bear!?). Besides sharing information on her own Tribe, Delores
is also VERY experienced providing classroom workshops on beadworking,
jewelry making, moccasin making, leather pouch making, and a delicious
frybread/cactus cooking demonstration sure to interest all classes within
the school building with its wonderful smells of cooking frybread that
quickly spread throughout the school where ever she presents her workshops!
Don Ivy (Coquille) is very involved with the
Coquille Indian Tribe's ongoing archaeological efforts and his extensive
knowledge in today's Tribal government and issues affecting it. As the
Tribe's Cultural Resource Program Coordinator he has helped organize each
Spring the regional Indian Culture Conference that has become an important
link between Oregon Tribes, universities and scientists. Don is also actively
involved in community planning and development for the Coquille Indian
Tribe and has a wonderful grasp of local Tribal stories. Don is recommended
especially for older students.
Carol Leaton (Cherokee) has seen her family
grow up through the local Indian Education Program and has been both a
popular Camp Cook at many of our Indian Education Summer Camps as well
as an Indian Resource Speaker in area classrooms! One of her most delicious
presentations is on demonstrating the preparation (and eating!) of frybread!
Carol also provides beadwork and jewelry making workshops for students
in classrooms. Her most popular presentation is her traditional regalia
display where she shares the dance regalia that her family have worn at
traditional powwows.
Esther Stutzman (Yonkalla/Kalapuya/Coos)
is available to provide classroom presentations and workshops (all grades)
on traditional Indian storytelling, American Indian music, American Indian
stereotypes and how to recognize them, and Oregon Indian history. She
has developed many American Indian guides and curriculum resources for
our area, including: "The American Indian Social Studies Curriculum
Activity Guide for Grades K-6, 7-8, High School"; "American
Indian Music For The Classroom"; "Thanksgiving . . . A Resource
Guide"; "An American Indian Perspective on Columbus"; and
"American Indian Stereotypes . . . The Truth Behind The Hype".
Because of travel distances involved from her home, please schedule a
minimum of two presentations per school per day.
Indian Assembly Resources:
THE COYOTE SINGERS is an intertribal Indian group that
is available as a valuable local school assembly resource for area schools.
THE COYOTE SINGERS present a wonderful demonstration of traditional Indian
drumming, singing and dancing, with local Indian students performing.
They include students in their presentations so that they may learn basic
traditional dancing. Their program also includes a strong message to students
to refrain from abusing alcohol and drugs. Since many of the members of
this group either attend school and/or work, please allow sufficient time
for scheduling a presentation for your school.
MOTHER EARTH'S CHILDREN has performed traditional Indian stories
in a visual manner for over twenty years in area schools. Storyteller
Esther Stutzman tells the traditional stories as its performers visually
recreate the action of the stories. During the performance the storyteller
asks for student volunteers to join in the action of the stories to assist
the actors. Action of the stories extends beyond the stage to directly
involve the audience in the stories. Funds generated by the non-profit
group are used to award outstanding Indian student achievement awards
to graduating Indian students. Available during first part of April each
year.
TWO-WAY-SEEING brings two old friends together to share a dramatic
and musical conversation exploring the
similarities and differences between pioneers and the American Indians
in Oregon who met them. In this unusual and lively presentation, mutual
friends and storytellers, (pictured at right) Esther Stutzman
(Yonkalla/Kalapuya/Coos) and Shannon Applegate (author
of "Skookum, An Oregon Pioneer Family's History and Lore") present
a sometimes humorous, always historically accurate, storytelling dialogue.
Performed in period costumes, their presentation focuses on lifeways,
traditional stories and historic incidents which have shaped the destiny
of their ancestors.
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