[1st-mile-nm] Navajo Nation Councilman Leonard Tsosie Convenes Lambda Rail Meeting

[Richard Lowenberg]

NAVAJO NATION TRIBAL COUNCIL MEDIA RELEASE  ---  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUGUST 28, 2007

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Sarisesa Begay, PIO, Navajo Nation Office of the Speaker - 928-871- 6384
Colleen Keane, Internet to the Hogans Committee, 505-379-3315

On August 15th, Council Delegate Leonard Tsosie Convened the 10th Internet
to the Hogans meeting featuring The National Lambda Rail Agreement between
the University of New Mexico and Navajo Technical College

AN INTERNET TO THE HOGANS HISTORIC SIGNING

In front of a packed room of Navajo and non-Navajo engineers, scientists,
educators, health and telemedicine specialists, television producers and
community people at the University of New Mexico (UNM)  on Wednesday,
August 15, 2007, Dr. Elmer Guy, President of Navajo Technical College
(NTC) and Dr. Barney Maccabe, UNMs Chief Information Officer for the
Computer Science Department signed an agreement that brought NTC into a
national partnership made up of research universities and scientific
laboratories  The National Lambda Rail Partnership.
MORE INTEREST AND MORE SUPPORT!

NTC is a Navajo Nation owned and operated tribal college located in
Crownpoint, New Mexico located about 170 miles northwest of Albuquerque.
Like most Navajo communities, Crownpoint is surrounded by mountains and
has limited telecommunications. Most families dont even have telephones or
electricity. With the signing of the National Lambda Rail Agreement,
Crownpoint will have access to a second Internet system that runs parallel
to our everyday Internet connectivity on the World Wide Web. The signing
of the agreement on August 15th at UNM was an historic moment for both
Navajo Technical College and the University of New Mexico.

This agreement is important to bringing high speed Internet access and
state of the art communication to Navajo communities. Navajo Technical
College and Din College, (another major Navajo-owned and operated college)
will soon have abundant broadband access to students and faculty to
conduct research, just like mainstream institutions, Steve Grey, Chairman
of the Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, (NNTRC)
said.
 UNMs Dr. Maccabe agreed. The connectivity supported by this partnership
will allow faculty and students at both institutions to form virtual
communities where individuals can share their cultures and their
experiences. Students and faculty from Navajo Technical College and the
broader Navajo communities will be able to participate in UNM degree
programs in both the learning and instructional roles. UNM will, in turn,
increase enrollment in its degree programs and these programs will benefit
from the knowledge and experiences of instructors who choose to be located
on the Navajo Nation.

AUGUST 15th MEETING HOSTED BY UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

The Internet to the Hogans meeting on August 15th was hosted by the
University of New Mexicos University Libraries. The Dean of University
Libraries, Dr. Martha Bedard, welcomed everyone along with Mary Alice
Tsosie, the Outreach and Liaison Librarian for the Indigenous Nations
Library Program. Participants included: Mr. James Tutt, former President
of Navajo Technical College and currently the Executive Director of
Nizhoni Smiles, Inc.; Dr. Elmer Guy, the current President of Navajo
Technical College; Dr. Barney Maccabe, UNM; Sandra Begay-Campbell, former
UNM Regent; Jeanne Whitehouse and Mildred Walters, New Mexico Tribal
Libraries Program; Dean Tom Davis, Navajo Technical College; Nancy
Martine-Alonzo, Assistant Cabinet Secretary for the Indian Education
Division of the State of New Mexico; Dr. Maggie George and Dr. Veronica
Chavez-Newman, State of New Mexico Higher Education Department; Dr. Anita
Pfeiffer, UNM Professor Emeriti; Dr. Gregory Cajete, UNMs Director of the
Native American Studies Department; Dr. Gayle Dinechacon,  Director UNM
Center for Native American Health; Dr. Dale Alverson, Medical Director UNM
Center for Telehealth; Toney Begay, Executive Director of New Mexico MESA
and Brent Nelson, Director of Navajo Nations Department of Din Education.

THE HOGAN HEROES!

The Internet to the Hogans effort also has a growing group of reformers
known as the Hogan Heroes -- Native and non-Native people working
individually or through their organizations to develop digital services
and resources. Navajo language programming and streaming video, electronic
mentoring, academic courses, dental services, health services, cultural
story telling, training programs and technical services are some of the
resources the Hogan Heroes plan to provide to Navajo families and chapter
houses once the wireless system is in place. There are 110 Navajo chapter
houses - community meeting places - across the Navajo Nation, a Tribal
Nation that spans three states: Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.

Most of the people attending previous Internet to the Hogans meetings came
back together with several new people joining the effort. This was the
10th Internet to the Hogans meeting convened by Delegate Leonard Tsosie.
The participants came from departments of the Navajo Nation, departments
of UNM, the UNM Gallup Branch, Navajo Technical College, Sandia National
Laboratory, New Mexico State Tribal Library, Institute for American Indian
Education, National Network of Digital Schools and Native American
Television Network. New representation came from Din Department of
Education, UNM College of Education, New Mexico Higher Education
Department, New Mexico Indian Education Department, Navajo Nation DHR, UNM
Native American Studies, Fort Lewis College,  Nizhoni Smiles, Inc. and New
Mexico MESA.

MORE DEVELOPMENTS!

Like the National Lambda Rail Agreement between UNM and NTC, additional
formal partnerships are falling into place as ITTH people and
organizations find ways to address the digital divide for Native American
communities.  Recently, the Navajo Nation, Indian Health Services, Navajo
Technical College, UNMs Center for Telehealth and Din College created a
committee to coordinate telecommunications, distance learning and
telemedicine resources for the Navajo people, according to Steve Grey.
Council Delegate Tsosie, Steve Grey, Ernest Franklin, Jason Arviso,
Norbert Nez, Harold Skow, Pearl Lee, Elrena Mitchell, Sylvia Jordan and
Francesca Shiekh are among the Navajo Nation dignitaries and technology
experts who sit on the committee. UNM representation includes Dr. Barney
Maccabe, Moria Gerety and Dr. Dale Alverson.

This effort establishes the foundation for ongoing collaboration with
Native American Tribes and communities throughout New Mexico and the
Southwest. We are learning how we can best work together to serve the
health and education needs of Native people, starting with the Navajo
Nation, Dr. Alverson said.

Like other social movements - the Womens Movement and the Civil Rights
Movement - the Internet to the Hogans initiative started at the community
level; it is marked by significant and sometimes spontaneous growth; and
it has dynamic leadership that keeps it moving it forward.

More and more people are coming forward and asking how can we contribute
to the effort?  Support for this project is getting larger and larger as
you can see from the August 15th attendance. I would like to thank Council
Delegate Tsosie for leading this initiative, Jason Arviso, Director,
Technology Services, Navajo Technical College.

NEXT ITTH MEETING

Watch for an announcement about the next groundbreaking event for the
Internet to the Hogans  a demonstration of Internet connectivity at a
traditional Navajo Hogan in the community of Crownpoint, New Mexico.

AFTER TEN MAJOR ITTH GATHERINGS, HERE ARE SOME OF THE ACHIEVEMENTS TO
DATE:

In early 2000, under the leadership of President James Tutt, Crownpoint
Institute of Technology, (CIT) which is now known as Navajo Technical
College (NTC), receives initial funding from NASA to develop a wireless
grid for the Navajo Nation.

In 2005, State Senator Leonard Tsosie begins convening Internet to the
Hogans meetings to bring together scientists, engineers, educators, cell
and phone company representatives and community people to share resources.

In January, 2006, with sponsorship from Senator Leonard Tsosie, the State
of New Mexico provides more than one million dollars in funding for
Internet to the Hogans infrastructure which included $500,000 for
transition of a Navajo television station to a digital signal.

In January 2006 and January of 2007, Governor Bill Richardson promises to
support the effort to bridge the digital divide for Navajo families.

In January, 2007, ground breaks for the first Internet to the Hogans tower
in Crownpoint, New Mexico.

In March, 2007, Delegate Leonard Tsosie convenes his first Internet to the
Hogans meeting as Council Delegate for the Navajo Nation extending his
leadership of the Internet to the Hogans effort from the Northwestern
region to the Navajo Nation, which is includes three states, New Mexico,
Arizona and Utah.

In January, 2007, with sponsorship from Senator Linda Lovejoy, the State
of New Mexico awards another $550,000 to continue laying the wireless
infrastructure.

In May of 2007, the Ramah Navajo community turns on the first digital
television station broadcasting in Navajo and English with engineering
support from Jim Gale and Dan Zillich of KNME-TV.

In Summer 2007, the Telemedicine Committee is established, which includes
representation from the Navajo Nation Tribal Council, Indian Health
Service, Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, Navajo
Technical College, Din College and UNMs Center for Telehealth.

In August, 2007, Navajo Technical College and UNM sign the historic
National Lambda Rail Agreement.

Internet to the Hogans participation grows from an estimated 15
participants and 6 organizations in 2005 to an estimated 240 interested
and contributing people from numerous organizations and communities.