The SRMT Updates the Community on Summer Employment Program, Emergency Planning, and the latest Tribal Council Resolution of the Questions Proposed Regarding Medical Marijuana and Industrial Hemp– “A few years ago, in 2014, we were asked to look at numbers for summer employment opportunities, and since then we have actually tripled our numbers,”…

SRMT Monthly Meeting Report- October 2016

The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal monthly meeting was held on October 2^nd, 2016 at the community building, chaired by Tribal Chief Eric Thompson.  The action items were read by Tribal Clerk, Betty Roundpoint, which read as follows:

• Request to take the concerns of the community members issue with the Amish to the Amish Elder(s).
• Request to have Tribal Council look into putting a ban on the billboards that are promoting cigarettes or alcohol.

Both requests to Tribal Council are currently ongoing.  Following the action items an update was provided by Stephanie Cook, SRMT Director of Education, on the Summer Employment Program.  “A few years ago, in 2014, we were asked to look at numbers for summer employment opportunities, and since then we have actually tripled our numbers,” stated Cook.  In 2014, the SRMT served 25 students; 2015 the number rose to 86; and in 2016 the SRMT employed 104 students in a wide range of departments.  The SRMT Educations Division’s Summer Employment has funding supports from the Room Occupancy Fee Fund and the Tribal General Fund, an estimated $320,000.  “We have revamped the program to have not only a teen focus but also a college program, which is the College and Career Readiness Program, as well as maintaining the youth program.”

There were 43 students in the College and Career Readiness Program this past summer; 29 youth, and 14 college interns.  Students worked at various locations on territory including Generations Park, SRMT Communications, the Early Childhood Development Program, the Akwesasne Boys & Girls Club, SRMT Environment, and Mohawk Networks to name a few.  “We went across the board to all division directors and expressed the need for work, and students were given tremendous opportunities.  Supervisors had nothing but great things to say about all of the students,” expressed Cook.

The interns were required to be in a college program, and were placed specifically in an area tailored to their interests and/or chosen collegiate program.  “We tried to place them in their career path, and really tried to tailor it to the student,” stated Cook.  The bulk of the students ranged from 15-17 years of age; 9^th-11^th graders.  Great feedback was received from that program, which was all supervised under Marie Cree-Benedict’s program and team.  They made the program what it was and continue to develop it.

The Career and Readiness Program was introduced by Rod Cook and Joni Cole to help provide students with skills for college or careers, but also provides a stipend to students as well, allowing them the opportunity to make money in their respective fields.  According to Education Director Stephanie Cook, this program has the possibility to increase to 150 students in 2017.  “We just need to get continued Council support, and be more proactive with our deadlines for students.  We are going to start about January/February in the coming year.  We went from 25 students to 104 in a few years; I think that’s pretty amazing.  We can only continue to grow.”

Following the update on the Summer Employment Program, Emergency Planning Manage, Sarah Lee Diabo, provided a presentation on Emergency Planning for Akwesasne, along with Katrina Jacobs, SRMT Training and Development Coordinator.  Both ladies have worked to identify the needs of the community members, and/or what division directors on what their staff may need.  They also work along with the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne Emergency Measures, Regina Jacobs, to identify the top threats within the community, as emergencies and/or disasters know no borders.  Some top threats include: environmental threats such as soil contamination from factories and farming, and infectious diseases.

The SRMT has also developed the Akwesasne Joint Emergency Planning Committee, which involves over 30 stakeholders- both local and external agencies- which include: the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, the Akwesasne Housing Authority, the Hogansburg Akwesasne Volunteer Fire Department, the US Coast Guard, Canadian Coast Guard, USET, FEMA- Region II, EPA, American Red Cross, NYS Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, and Franklin and St. Lawrence County Emergency Services Divisions.

SRMT Emergency Planning has also developed an Akwesasne Emergency Committee- Akwesasne & Local Emergency Planning Committee (ALEPC); which includes over 30 First Response Members within NYS, Quebec, and Ontario, and also governs the Joint Emergency Operations Plan (AJEOP), Akwesasne Hazardous Materials Contingency Plan (AHMCP), and ALEPC Training & Response Initiatives.

Emergency Planning has introduces new Office Protocols, which requires all current and new Tribal employees to have completed the National Incident Management Courses: ICS 100, ICS 200, ICS 700, and ICS 8000.  All Directors, Assistant Directors, Program Managers, and Supervisors must also complete ICS 300 and ICS 400.  The benefits of using the Incident Command System (ICS) are common terminology, manageable span of control, incident action plans, comprehensive resource management, integrated communications, incident locations and facilities, and to establish and transfer commands.

The SRMT is also NIMS compliant, which is the National Incident Management System.  NIMS provides a consistent nationwide template to enable Tribal Federal, State and local governments, private sectors, and non-governmental organizations to work together effectively during emergencies.  NIMS helps prepare for, prevent, respond to, recover from, and mitigate the effects of incidents regardless of cause, size, location, or complexity in order to reduce the loss of life and property, and/or harm to the environment.

Akwesasne Emergency Plans include: the Akwesasne Joint Emergency Operations Plan (AJEOP)- Spring 2017 anticipated completion; the SRMT Safety Plan- completed Spring 2016; the Akwesasne Hazardous Materials Contingency Plan (AHMCP)- completed in 2014; SRMT Department/Division Standard Operating Guides (SOPS)- ongoing; Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP) for Essential Divisions- 6 Essential Divisions have provided drafts as of Sept. 2016; Strategic Communications Interoperability Plan; TCIP- October 2016 anticipated completion; and the Akwesasne Mitigation Plan- December 2016 anticipated completion.

Diabo provided the five different types of incidents which are:

• Type 1- Thousands of responders (i.e. Hurricane Katrina)
• Type 2- Hundreds of responders (i.e. Dannemora Escapees)
• Type 3- More than one agency, and more than one Operational Period (i.e. Ice Storm ’98)
• Type 4- One agency/short time span (i.e. power outage)
• Type 5- One agency/short durations (i.e. car accident) 80% of calls

The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe employs over 700 employees, and the Emergency Measures Division, and has established Tribal Emergency Response teams.  Dependent on the emergency, whether it is a Pandemic, Weather Emergency, Environmental, etc., there is an emergency response team dedicated to each type of emergency that may arise.  “If it is a pandemic, it will go to Health; Weather/Emergency preparedness it would go to myself (Sarah Lee Diabo), Environmental will go to Ken Jock, and so forth,” stated Diabo.  “Communications will also be brought in to most emergencies, to Brendan White, for our voice.”

Diabo presented the trainings offered in 2016 which included: Vital Records and Emergency Preparedness- Jan. 28, 2016; Continuity of Operations Training- Feb. 24-25, 2016; Incident Command System 200 & 400 Courses- June 6-9, 2016; 40 Hour Hazwoper Training- July 18-22, 2016; CAMEO/Marplot Training- Aug. 16-18, 2016; Boom Deployment Exercise on the St. Lawrence River- Aug. 23-24, 2016; Strategic Planning Communication Interoperability Planning Workshop- Sept. 1-2, 2016; and Clandestine Lab Training (Meth Lab Training)- Sept. 8-9, 2016.

Upcoming trainings include: Community Emergency Response Team Training (CERT)- which the SRMT is seeking 15-20 community volunteers, tentative date Feb. 2017; 2017 Gotham Shield Exercise, tentative date May 2017; OSHA 30 Course for Construction, tentative date March 2017; and HazMat Technician Course, June 2017.

In conclusion, the Emergency Planning Dept. has developed a Disaster Response Committee that identifies key personnel, meets regularly, and has completed 2 annexes to the AJEOP.  They have identified our top hazards in Akwesasne (THIRA), power outage annex, and the tribal interoperability communication plan to be included as an Annex- anticipated completion is October 2016.   When the updated AJEOP is completed SRMT Council, Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, and the Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs will approve via Council Resolutions.  They will all work jointly to continue to have annual mock drills and exercises.

The Emergency Planning Training and Development Coordinator, along with Manager Sarah Lee Diabo, will be going around the community every Friday to ensure all homes within the southern portion of Akwesasne have updated to 911 addresses.  They are checking mail boxes and houses, and ask that all community members please update their homes as well, not just their mailboxes.  They will be driving around each Friday in a black pickup truck, so please be aware of this, they are not predators.  For further information you may contact Sarah Lee Diabo at 518-358-2272, ext. 2230, or via email at ldiabo@srmt-nsn.gov.

Following the Emergency Planning presentation, Tribal Chief Eric Thompson read the Tribal Council Resolution (TCR) in its entirety, in regards to the two questions put forward to the community for a questioning period, August 6^th-September 6^th, 2016.  The two draft questions proposed read as follows:

• “Should the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe explore options to legalize, license, and regulate the cultivation, production, and distribution of MEDICAL MARIJUANA?”
• “Should the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe explore options to legalize, license, and regulate the cultivation, production, and distribution of INDUSTRIAL HEMP?”

Tribal Council has officially signed this TCR, and will move forward with referendum.  There will be three public meetings which are required by the Election and Referendum Ordinance, to be held in the Community Building.  The first meeting was Wednesday, October 5^th, 2016 at 6PM and 7PM, respectively for each question.  The second meeting was held Thursday, October 6^th, 2016 at the community building at 5PM and 6PM respectively for each question.  The third meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 19^th, 2016 at 5PM and 6PM respectively for each question.

New business was proposed by community members, which are now action items for the November 2016 Tribal Monthly Meeting.  They read as follows:  A request for Tribal Council to find out where we are at with the drug situation in Akwesasne; and a request for Tribal Council to look into insurance waivers for workers participating in the furnace cleaning program.

The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe encourages all Tribal members to attend their monthly meetings.  If you cannot do so, you may listen to the recording in the Tribal Clerk’s office during regular business hours.  The November Monthly Tribal Meeting is scheduled for November 5^th, 2016.

BY: Ohseraseia:hawi