Alexis Nakota, Northern Gateway School District reach agreement

Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation and Northern Gateway School District have replaced their 1988 tuition contract after 18 months of negotiations. A new contract now regulates the school district’s service of teaching Alexis students at Darwell, Onoway and Alberta Beach. Kevin Andrea, Northern Gateway superintendent, told the Mayerthorpe Freelancer that the 1988 contract needed updating. “It had a lot of clauses (which) no one knew what they were for. Over the last three to four school board terms there have been attempts to try to bring the 1988 agreement into the present. For a bunch of reasons we weren’t able to get it done…. In 2012 we have an agreement that does reflect how Northern Gateway and Alexis work together to deliver service to students of the reserve.” About 80 Alexis students attend Northern Gateway schools.

Kijiji scam targets Enoch Cree Nation
RCMP were recently warning Enoch Cree Nation residents about a “widespread Kijiji scam.” In September, someone was impersonating a Chief from a First Nation Band and contacting people in order to sell big-ticket items, like large farm equipment or machinery, on the online classified website, Kijiji. RCMP officers are investigating several calls, coming from across Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. “They’ll ask the seller to wire some money to help them, just a small amount to get through this emergency, and after the seller does this, then they never hear from them again,” said Cpl. Collette Zazulak with Spruce Grove/Stony Plain RCMP. The amount lost ranges from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars. Enoch Cree Chief Ron Morin expressed frustration over the scam and advised members to be cautious.