1988-04-13 Char-Koosta News

              %gosìa 9\[ezos
A news puBfication of the Salis fi and 'Kgotenai Tribes
of the Jfathead Indian Reservation
Chief Charlo of the Salish VOLUME 16, NUMBER 47
THE BUTTERCUP MONTH
Chief Koostatah of the Kootenai APRIL 13, 1988
New Two Eagle River School might see groundbreaking next month
The month of May is something of a traditional celebration season for youngsters because it signals the winding down of the school year.
The students at Two Eagle River School have an additional reason for celebrating: Construction is due to begin this spring on their new school building in Pablo, just north of Salish Kootenai College.
The new building for the 15-year-old school, now housed in Dixon, has been in the planning stage since early 1983. Back then, it was anticipated that the project wouldn't take more than about two years to complete, because it was alternately #1 and #3 on the BIA's construction priority list.
Between then and now, though, the project has been plagued with problems. Congress, for example, wouldn't commit to the $4 million needed. It would turn out later that two schools — Two Eagle and Rocky Boy — would end up sharing one fiscal year's money, with TERS eventually being granted around $2.5 million.
Next came problems over what the $2.5 would buy. Congress wanted
"modular construction", which was condemned as "glorified trailers" by the Tribes. A protest in 1985 against the modular plan by both the Flathead and Rocky Boy Tribes was successful. Plans now call for a "partially pre-engineered structure" here.
Choosing a site caused a delay too, with the original three locations — near where the Jocko and Flathead rivers meet, and two places near the Kicking Horse Job Corps Center south of Ronan — being rejected in favor of property just north of SKC, thanks to anticipated savings in utilities installation. The two schools could share a library and gymnasium too, it was thought, to the financial benefit of both.
(Continues on page three)
10
* ©
w N
51 co
Reservation TV station is up and testing
a
Hot
Si
2
The Reservation's public TV station was on the air for about 20 hours last week for testing, reports program director Frank Tyro. Channel 25, which will serve anyone in sight of Westland Seed in Ronan, has been tested but a problem or two cropped up. Channel 28 in Mission is due to be tested this week.
To receive the signals if you're in one of the two service areas, your set will need a UHF antenna pointed in the direction of the transmitter in your town (which, in St. Ignatius, is the tallest water tower).
Tyro said that once the testing is complete and they're confident that all the bugs are worked out, they'll be publishing a schedule of programs. Plans a little farther in the future call for selling detailed programming guides to help offset the cost of producing them.