The Daily Spark

Stephanie Iron Shooter, director of the Office of American Indian Health at Montana’s Department of Public Health and Human Services, resigned Sept. 2, according to Montana Free Press. She led the office, created in 2015 to address Native health disparities, since February 2022 and was the third person to hold the role. In a Sept. 2 email to tribal leaders, Iron Shooter wrote that “recent events” had led her to resign, adding, “I did my best for our people.”

Charlie Brereton, DPHHS director, said Heidi DeRoche, programs officer for the office, will serve as acting director. He added the department “remains committed to working with all Montana tribes to meet the health needs of our tribal communities.” Iron Shooter’s tenure included controversy over the 2023 elimination of the tribal relations manager position, which tribal leaders criticized for lacking consultation.

The Arizona Department of Child Safety has pledged immediate reforms following a Sept. 3 stakeholder meeting that included families, law enforcement, prosecutors, tribal leaders and child welfare advocates, according to AZ Free News.

The department plans to draft clearer notification rules requiring group homes to promptly alert it and law enforcement when a child leaves placement. The department also intends to share facility locations with law enforcement, create standardized “face sheets” for runaway youth, renew standing meetings with the San Carlos Apache Tribe and expand tribal outreach, and develop a process to share licensing actions with tribes contracting with department-approved facilities.

State Sen. Carine Werner emphasized the need for long-term accountability. She was quoted as saying, “This is a step in the right direction, but it can’t be the last.”

TG4 will air Éire agus na Chéad Náisiúin on Sept. 17, a documentary that examines the complex roles Irish immigrants played in Native American history, according to Donegal Live. The program highlights Donegal-born seanchaí and memoirist Micí Mac Gabhann, best known for his posthumously published memoir Rotha Mór an tSaoil. Gabhann emigrated to the United States in the 1880s and worked in Montana’s mines.

Produced by Ronin Films with funding from the ILBF and Coimisiún na Meáin, the film includes perspectives from Irish historians and First Nations voices. It explores connections ranging from trade and alliances to displacement and conflict, including the Baker Massacre and the Battle of Little Bighorn. Contributors such as Mohawk elders Kay Olan and Tom Porter, Choctaw artist Waylon Gary White Deer and Lakota historian Dakota Wind Goodhouse reflect on the legacies of Irish involvement in Indigenous history.

Twenty high school students attended the Oscar Howe Summer Art Institute at the University of South Dakota this June, according to Arts Midwest. The program, now in its 35th year, gave 10th, 11th and 12th graders the chance to live on campus while learning from professional Native artists through classes, open studio time and late-night sessions.

Bdewakantunwan Dakota artist Tylar Larsen of Cansa’yapi, who joined first as a student and later as a counselor, said the experience shaped his path through undergraduate and master’s studies. “I had never stepped foot on a college campus before this,” he was quoted as saying. Visiting instructor Keith BraveHeart, a citizen of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, said the institute builds on Howe’s legacy of challenging stereotypes in Native art. “It becomes contagious. You all fall into this creative bliss,” BraveHeart said.

Waller Road Elementary School in Waller, Washington, has installed a new Indigenous American Nations map following a Native student’s question about representation, according to reporting by Puyallup Tribal News. The map, created by Diné mapmaker Peter Klumpenhower, features more than 400 Indigenous nations with soft borders to reflect shared lands in the 1500s. It was unveiled during Family Cultural Night on May 29.

Multilingual Education Paraeducator Michael Frederickson said the school has the highest number of Native students in the district, making the display especially important. “We want that included, and we want it to be permanent,” he was quoted as saying. Principal John Huson said the map aligns with the school’s Since Time Immemorial curriculum and goals set in a memorandum of understanding with the Puyallup Tribe.

The Bearscat Bakehouse and Sacred Pipe Resource Center are distributing for free 200 jelly-filled doughnuts featuring a red icing handprint Sept. 5-6 on a first come first serve basis at the bakery’s South Bismarck location, 601 S. Second St.

The bakery and Sacred Pipe partnered for the third year in a row to raise awareness for missing and murdered Indigenous people during the UTTC International Powwow, which draws a crowd.

“The symbol represents the silencing of the voices of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls,” Sacred Pipe Resource Center posted on Facebook. “The symbol calls for the end of violence against Native women/girls/people and for more attention to the high rates of disappearance of Indigenous people.”

Joint CAP: Bearscat Bakehouse’s Micah Tiger holds an MMIP-inspired doughnut at the bakery, 601 S. Second Street, Bismarck, North Dakota, Sept. 5, 2025. The bakery is handing out the doughnuts for free on a first-come basis to raise awareness about the MMIP crisis. (Buffalo’s Fire/Jolan Kruse)

Faculty at Ohio State University can no longer make land acknowledgments unless they are directly tied to course subject matter, according to a new policy from the Office of University Compliance and Integrity. The change is one of several adopted in response to a state law passed in March that eliminates diversity, equity and inclusion offices at public universities, Inside Higher Ed reported.

The policy states that acknowledgments are “considered statements on behalf of an issue or cause” and cannot be used at university-sponsored events, in syllabi, on websites or through other official channels. Ohio State spokesperson Ben Johnson told Inside Higher Ed the policy “does not categorically prohibit land acknowledgements” and that faculty “retain their academic freedom” when relevant to class content. Faculty in the American Indian Studies program and members of the Ohio State AAUP have criticized the restrictions and sought clarification.

U.S. measles cases have surged to the highest level in 33 years. According to the CDC, 1,431 cases have been reported this year. That’s why health specialists from the Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board spoke at the UTTC Tribal Leaders Summit about the importance of vaccinations.

Measles is a highly contagious airborne virus. Sarah Shewbrooks, data coordinating unit director and lead epidemiologist on the board, said that one out of five people who contract measles will be hospitalized. The virus is especially dangerous for children — one out of 20 with measles will get pneumonia, a leading cause of child death.

There’s no cure, but the measles vaccine is 93% effective after one dose and 97% after two.

“You don’t get vaccines better than this,” said Shewbrooks.

Tinka Duran, citizen of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and senior director of the Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center, acknowledged tribal communities’ long history of distrust in vaccinations and Western medicine, which contributes to lower vaccination rates on reservations.

That’s why it’s important for tribal communities to hear about the importance of vaccinations from people they trust, said Shewbrooks.

“This isn’t going to come from me,” said Shewbrooks as she lifted her lanyard identifying her as a health specialist. “It’s got to come from tribal leaders.”

A “helicopter researcher” gathers information and conducts studies about Indigenous communities but then never shares that research with those communities, Julie Smith-Yliniemi, citizen of the White Earth Reservation, said Thursday at the UTTC Tribal Leaders Summit in Bismarck, North Dakota.

The University of North Dakota Indigenous Trauma & Resilience Research Center does the opposite, she said: It conducts “community-based participatory research” that engages directly with Indigenous communities and uses their feedback to improve its studies.

Smith-Yliniemi, director of community-engaged research for the center, shared that work during the afternoon panel “Braiding Knowledge Systems.”

“We need to make sure that data is relevant to the community,” she said, highlighting the need to come together with Indigenous communities to conduct and disseminate research.

Responding to a community need, Smith-Yliniemi is currently researching how sobriety is affected when people regularly engage in “culture camps,” weekly meetings where Indigenous community members craft together. Along with taking feedback from participants, community members also sit on the research team.

Smith-Yliniemi ended the panel by encouraging students and attendees to learn from each other.

This marks the third year the Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board’s informatics team has been building data infrastructure for disease intervention and prevention in Native communities.

Nick Hill, the team’s senior informatics director, and his colleague Stephan Pingel, informatics specialist, spoke at the UTTC Tribal Leaders Summit Sept. 4 in Bismarck, North Dakota.

“We want to solve problems, not just talk theory,” Hill said.

The team tracks, stores, secures, accesses and exchanges data among tribes to prevent the spread of disease and manage exposures amid outbreaks.

A real-time dashboard, called the Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board, is accessible to the public to view and enter information.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit now has high-tech tools to bring closure to cold cases in addition to victim services, rewards and other resources.

An underwater drone assists with searches in the water. Ground-penetrating radar locates remains at potential burial sites by using radio waves to generate coordinates. The technology can detect remains as small as a partial fingernail, shared Missing and Murdered Unit Victim Specialist Bobbie Olauson and her team at the UTTC Tribal Summit Wednesday in Bismarck, North Dakota. The FBI also assists with investigations and supports tribal law enforcement.

“Families need more than updates,” said Olauson. “They need to feel seen and heard.”

The unit accepts tips on cases or cases can be reported at 1-833-560-2065.

Collaboration is coming up as a consistent theme at this year’s UTTC Tribal Summit in Bismarck, North Dakota. During an afternoon panel, Surojit Gupta, mechanical engineering professor, spoke to students and faculty about the University of North Dakota’s research projects and their partnership with UTTC.

“We want to work with the entire state to develop new technologies,” said Gupta.

Gupta and the researchers at University of North Dakota are developing materials critical for renewable energy technologies and for worsening weather events — stronger ceramic, foam to clean up oil spills, and cement and plastic made out of soybeans. Gupta’s lab also partners with the engineering program at UTTC for its ASPIRE summer camp and a new research class.

Alexa Azure, a citizen of Standing Rock Sioux Nation and the engineering department chair at UTTC, said the University of North Dakota’s partnership with UTTC provides, “opportunities for collaboration to develop solutions that impact tribal, state and global technologies.”

Buffalo’s Fire is covering the UTTC Tribal Summit and International Powwow live all week.

Culturally sensitive programs and services are crucial for urban Indians, Lorraine Davis told attendees at her UTTC Tribal Leaders Summit panel Sept. 3.

“I saw there was a lack of help for Native Americans,” said Davis, founder and CEO of Native Inc. and Native American Development Center. “What I wanted was tribal people helping tribal people.”

Native Inc. provides programs for domestic violence survivors, homelessness, youth services, cultural events and more. The organizations have offices in Bismarck and Fargo but will open a new office in Grand Forks this winter.

Davis aims to inspire: “We all have a fighting spirit within us.”

At the 20th annual UTTC Tribal Summit, tribal leaders, presenters and attendees are talking about energy. After Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Chairman Mark Fox focused his remarks on energy at the opening session, the Midwest Tribal Energy Resource Association kicked off the energy discussion during the first series of panel discussions.

MTERA director of policy and advocacy Andy Bessler said tribes need to work together now more than ever to achieve energy sovereignty. He said MTERA and the 33 tribes in Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois that it partners with are pivoting with their energy development plans after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency canceled roughly $7 billion in grants nationwide this year.

MTERA lost $60 million in federal funding, and Indigenized Energy, a tribal energy coalition like MTERA that works with North Dakota and South Dakota tribes, lost $136 million, according to Bessler.

Many tribes were counting on the grant money to develop energy plans, train staff, hire contractors and implement energy projects. Without that money, tribes must generate revenue elsewhere, whether that’s securing funding through state partnerships or through private ventures.

“Tribes helping tribes is a key strategy we’ll have to use right now,” said Bessler. “Let’s just help each other get through this.”

Buffalo’s Fire is covering the UTTC Tribal Summit and International Powwow live all week.

The 2025 United Tribes Technical College Tribal Leaders Summit is getting underway in Bismarck, North Dakota, with the opening plenary session on Wednesday morning, Sept. 3, in partnership with Great Plains Tribal Leaders’ Health Board.

Two days of panel discussions, interactive workshops and networking opportunities aim to promote cultural exchange and foster collective progress on healthcare, education, culture, economic development and more. Cody Two Bears, founder of Indigenized Energy, anchors the program with his keynote on Thursday. Learn more.

This big week gets even bigger Friday with the kickoff of the UTTC International Powwow, among the largest powwows in the country. Thousands are traveling to Bismarck for the array of dance contests, memorials and vendors offering Indigenous food, art and resources. On Friday and Saturday evenings, the International Powwow will welcome TaikoArts Midwest to share their dynamic performance of drumming, dance, martial arts and athletics. Learn more.

Buffalo’s Fire will be on-site covering the conference and the powwow live with regular Daily Sparks and news stories.

The Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes are urging the federal government to return tens of thousands of acres within the Wind River Indian Reservation, according to WyoFile. In a July 15 letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the Eastern Shoshone Business Council wrote, “It has been the Wind River Tribes’ view for eighty years that these lands, which were part of the 1868 Treaty, should be returned to the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes as part of the Wind River Indian Reservation.”

The tribes are seeking to reacquire roughly 69,000 acres identified as “excess” by the Bureau of Reclamation, according to agency officials. Bureau of Land Management staff are reviewing updated legal descriptions of the property, with a public comment period expected after environmental assessments are published this winter, BLM-Wyoming Senior Advisor Brad Purdy said.

The Ko-Kwel Wellness Centers in Coos Bay and Eugene, operated by the Coquille Indian Tribe, are preparing for possible service interruptions as Medicaid cuts loom, according to Underscore Native News. About 30% of Native people younger than 65 are enrolled in Medicaid, which accounted for nearly two-thirds of third-party revenue for the Indian Health Service system of care in 2023, according to the National Indian Health Board.

Caryn Mickelson, CEO of the Coquille Indian Tribe’s Health and Wellness Division, said the cuts could impact the wider community. “Even if the tribe is not directly impacted by any type of federal funding or state funding adjustments, if our community health system is affected, that reduces access for our tribal clients as well,” Mickelson was quoted as saying. Coquille Chairwoman Brenda Meade added, “We as tribal nations are serving some of the most vulnerable populations in our nation. We’re doing very good work.”

First Nations actor Graham Greene died Monday in a Toronto hospital after a long illness, according to ICT. He was 73.

Greene, Oneida, was born in Ohsweken on the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario. He earned an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor in “Dances with Wolves” and appeared in films including “Wind River,” “Maverick” and “The Green Mile.” His television credits included “Reservation Dogs,” “Northern Exposure,” “Tulsa King,” “Wolf Lake” and “Echo.” He also won a Grammy in 2000 for best spoken word album for children, and in 2021 received a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, according to Variety.

“He was a great man of morals, ethics and character, and will be eternally missed,” his agent Michael Greene said in a statement to Deadline. Greene is survived by his wife, Hilary Blackmore, and daughter, Lilly Lazare-Greene.

NDN Collective announced major organizational changes in response to what it described as an “unstable economic and political environment.” According to NDN Collective, the shifts include layoffs and reductions or eliminations of certain programs.

“Over the last seven years, NDN Collective has resourced an incredible network of Indigenous leaders, organizations, Nations, and businesses through our central lens of Defend, Develop, Decolonize,” the group said. “We recognize now that it is time to pivot our strategies to respond to the time we are in.”

According to NDN Collective, the decision to restructure was “heartbreaking,” noting that laid-off employees “are our relatives.” The organization said it remains committed to advancing the LANDBACK movement and building Indigenous power.