'Clap one's hands.' Please refer to the link at the bottom of the blog for the correct pronunciation in S'Klallam. Let's see what NR, Legal, ECE and HR have accomplished for the month of January!
Have any employees received a certification this month? Or completed a training?
- Roma Call attended a two day Leadership Training course along with other Tribal department directors.
Have any goals been met this month? Which individual(s) reached them?
- We are very excited that we have a new Finfish Manager (Leah Mellinger) and Fisheries Policy Advisors (Adrian Purser and Tyler Sullivan) on board. Adrian and Leah were involved with the North of Falcon salmon co-management meetings this month. We also promoted Nikki Vennemen into the Forest and Conservation Program Manager.
Are any grants being utilized? What for?
- We are utilizing our PCSRF and EPA Puget Sound R&M grants to prepare for the 2024 Hood Canal Bridge Ecosystem Assessment (HCBEA) project.
Want to highlight or give a shoutout to any individuals this month?
- We want to give a shoutout to all the staff that presented on the important work we've been doing within the department to the General Council at the meeting on January 30th, 2024. We would like to highlight Courtney Hart, who has recently chosed to fill a seat on the Pacific Coast Section (PCS) of the National Shellfish Association - one of the primary missions at the PCS is to support student involvement in shellfish research, resource management, restoration and culture methods. They are also responsible for planning the joint annual conference with the Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association (PCSGA) in the fall. We'd also like to give a shoutout to Kaitlyn Guttierez for providing excellent service at the NR front desk while covering for our Administrative Assistant who is out on maternity leave.
Any projects that you completed this month?
- Kaitlyn Gutierrez worked with the NWIFC and WDFW to get all fish ticket data reconciled through 2022. This is a huge accomplishment since this has always been a slow and tedious process. A data management evaluation was completed with the help of our consultant (Stantec) to identify needs for managing NR department data.
- Roma Call attended a two day Leadership Training course along with other Tribal department directors.
Have any goals been met this month? Which individual(s) reached them?
- We are very excited that we have a new Finfish Manager (Leah Mellinger) and Fisheries Policy Advisors (Adrian Purser and Tyler Sullivan) on board. Adrian and Leah were involved with the North of Falcon salmon co-management meetings this month. We also promoted Nikki Vennemen into the Forest and Conservation Program Manager.
Are any grants being utilized? What for?
- We are utilizing our PCSRF and EPA Puget Sound R&M grants to prepare for the 2024 Hood Canal Bridge Ecosystem Assessment (HCBEA) project.
Want to highlight or give a shoutout to any individuals this month?
- We want to give a shoutout to all the staff that presented on the important work we've been doing within the department to the General Council at the meeting on January 30th, 2024. We would like to highlight Courtney Hart, who has recently chosed to fill a seat on the Pacific Coast Section (PCS) of the National Shellfish Association - one of the primary missions at the PCS is to support student involvement in shellfish research, resource management, restoration and culture methods. They are also responsible for planning the joint annual conference with the Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association (PCSGA) in the fall. We'd also like to give a shoutout to Kaitlyn Guttierez for providing excellent service at the NR front desk while covering for our Administrative Assistant who is out on maternity leave.
Any projects that you completed this month?
- Kaitlyn Gutierrez worked with the NWIFC and WDFW to get all fish ticket data reconciled through 2022. This is a huge accomplishment since this has always been a slow and tedious process. A data management evaluation was completed with the help of our consultant (Stantec) to identify needs for managing NR department data.
Have any employees received a certification or completed a training?
- We're all licensed attorneys are our main priority is maintaining continued legal education credits.
Have any goals been met? Which individual(s) reached them?
- We hired a new Legislative Attorney. Being fully staffed helps us meet one of our primary goals of maintaining and improving Tribal Government efficiency.
Want to highlight or give a shoutout to any individual(s) this month?
- Steven Moe has stepped up and carried much of the department's workload while Gina Steiner was wrapping up a 4-month long, intense project. She's very grateful to Steven for being so flexible and willing to help/step up. We're also happy to have our newest attorney, David Robinson on board!
Any projects that you completed this month?
- The Tribe received its first settlement payment (abatement funds) as a part of its claims for damages against vaping companies, to compensate the Tribe for the costs it has expended to combat the vaping epidemic. A majority of the terms of the settlement agreement are confidential but the Tribe believes the settlement is reasonable.
- We're all licensed attorneys are our main priority is maintaining continued legal education credits.
Have any goals been met? Which individual(s) reached them?
- We hired a new Legislative Attorney. Being fully staffed helps us meet one of our primary goals of maintaining and improving Tribal Government efficiency.
Want to highlight or give a shoutout to any individual(s) this month?
- Steven Moe has stepped up and carried much of the department's workload while Gina Steiner was wrapping up a 4-month long, intense project. She's very grateful to Steven for being so flexible and willing to help/step up. We're also happy to have our newest attorney, David Robinson on board!
Any projects that you completed this month?
- The Tribe received its first settlement payment (abatement funds) as a part of its claims for damages against vaping companies, to compensate the Tribe for the costs it has expended to combat the vaping epidemic. A majority of the terms of the settlement agreement are confidential but the Tribe believes the settlement is reasonable.
Have any employees received a certification this month? Or completed a training?
- Chrissy McBride, Darion Roan, Heather Sullivan, Brittany Reynolds, Emily McBride, Holly Skinner and JoAnn Decoteau all received the Annual Teaching Strategies Reliability Certificate this month.
Are any grants being utilized? What for?
- We are utilizing grants in the office of head start to provide early childhood services, and a farm to school purchasing grant to increase locally sourced grown/harvested/hunted/fished foods in the menu at our ECE.
Want to highlight or give a shoutout to any individuals this month?
- We want to raise our hands to the newly elected ECE Policy Council members - Danielle Folz, Tawny Decoteau, Shelaya Landers, Celina Decoteau, Rayna Espinosa, Brandalynn Bowechop, Melia Moore, Kari Decoteau and Faith Wion.
- Chrissy McBride, Darion Roan, Heather Sullivan, Brittany Reynolds, Emily McBride, Holly Skinner and JoAnn Decoteau all received the Annual Teaching Strategies Reliability Certificate this month.
Are any grants being utilized? What for?
- We are utilizing grants in the office of head start to provide early childhood services, and a farm to school purchasing grant to increase locally sourced grown/harvested/hunted/fished foods in the menu at our ECE.
Want to highlight or give a shoutout to any individuals this month?
- We want to raise our hands to the newly elected ECE Policy Council members - Danielle Folz, Tawny Decoteau, Shelaya Landers, Celina Decoteau, Rayna Espinosa, Brandalynn Bowechop, Melia Moore, Kari Decoteau and Faith Wion.
Have any employees received a certification this month? Or completed a training?
- Jennifer Wright-Tom and Melia Moore completed the training and testing for their Tribal Human Resources Professional (THRP) certification. Every HR team member now has at least one nationally recognized HR specific certification.
- Jennifer Wright-Tom and Melia Moore completed the training and testing for their Tribal Human Resources Professional (THRP) certification. Every HR team member now has at least one nationally recognized HR specific certification.
Thank you to each and every one of you that has participated thus far. I enjoy reading about what each department is up to, especially those that we don't have regular contact with! Keep up the hard work everyone! Don't forget to check back next month, how many new hires will we see then?
