On December 27 the Baker-Polito Administration announced a $1 million award and state and federal tax credits to support the construction of Mashpee Wampanoag Village in Mashpee on land owned by the Wampanoag Tribe. The funding will catalyze a new affordable housing development, featuring 42 rental units, including 13 units reserved for very low-income families and individuals.

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Education Department, through support from the Building Pathways for Tribal Youth, have organized a week of educational workshops, fairs and a basketball tournament during February vacation. All of the events, workshops and activities are free and open to tribal youth in middle school, high school or are college age and will be held at the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Community and Government Center.

Join Mukayuhsak Weekuw staff and families for classroom tours and pre-enrollment information Monday evening January 8 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Meet our teachers, learn about our Wôpanâak language classroom, Montessori education, teacher training, and our year-round early childhood language programs including a 180-day academic year (September – June) and our Baby Turtle summer program. 

Jason Simon, retired professional hockey player of the NHL, is making a special visit to the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe to speak with tribal youth.  Tribal youth ages 12 and over are invited to this motivational speech and hockey skills demonstration. The event will be held on Saturday, January 13 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Community and Government Center.

We are looking for aspiring performers from the Wampanoag community to take part in a major community theatre production in Plymouth, UK in 2020.

The production will tell the story of the voyage of the Mayflower and the first year in Plimoth through the eyes of those who came there from England and through the eyes of the Wampanoag Tribe. The script will be developed in collaboration with Wampanoag writers and researchers.

Mason Hendricks has been named on the 2017 Standard Times Offensive All Stars team roster. Mason Hendricks is a senior at Wareham High School. He has played football OL/DL consecutively for the last 11 seasons. (Beginning at age 7.) He believes, “Football is in my blood.” He is good with his technique, coming down the line hard. He has a strong performance at defensive tackle and is looking forward to playing at the college level next year. Mason is the son of Jody Santagate and Lawrence Hendricks of Wareham. The great grandson of Francis Hendricks and the grandson of the late Lawrence “Big Larry” Hendricks III.

Tribal high school students enrolled in this year's first ever Wôpanâak Pasuq (Wampanaog Language Level 1) World Language class at Mashpee High School conducted interviews on December 11th with WCAI's Morning Edition Senior News Producer and Mashpee TV Producer Talia Landry. Held during the daily class time in the Mashpee Public Schools' Indian Education room, instructor Melanie Roderick, parent Judi Urquhart, and superintendent Patricia DeBoer were also in attendance for the interviews. Watch for their upcoming news radio and Mashpee TV spots coming soon! 

Starting in 2018 the Mashpee Wampanoag Housing Department will have a new program that it will be adding to its stable of housing assistance programs that it offers. The new Emergency Home Repair program, unlike many of the other programs that are targeting tribal citizens in search of housing, is geared towards homeowners in the Tribe’s service area.

Members of the Children's House teaching and nutrition team presented an hour and a half long storytelling workshop at the national Community Food Systems Conference held at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel in December. Focused on exploring the intersection of food security, social justice, and sustainable agriculture, and drawing hundreds of attendees, the event was keynoted by Winona LaDuke from the White Earth Nation of Ojibwe in northern Minnesota. 

On Monday, January 8 the College Pathways for Tribal Youth will be hosting a College Night from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Community and Government Center. The College night, which will provide guidance with everything from SAT prep and FAFSA assistance to scheduling college visits and scholarship opportunities, is open to all tribal students in the area that are interested in attending college, further their education, currently attending college or recently graduated.

From hurricanes to winter blizzards to nor’easters our Tribal Community in Barnstable County is vulnerable to large, destructive storms in any season. These storms can disrupt our daily lives with the loss of power, transportation, commerce, communications, and even housing. 

Tribal students in middle and high school along with a parent or guardian are invited to visit Merrimack College on Saturday January 27.  The visit will include a college tour, attending a basketball game and dinner. Transportation will be leaving the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Community and Government Center at 10:00 a.m. and is scheduled to return at 9:00 p.m.

College Horizons, a six-day “crash course” in preparing for the college application process, will be holding a session at the University of Pennsylvania June 23-29. This is a summer college admissions workshop for American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian High School Students. Tribal students interested in attending college are encouraged to apply now.

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Emergency Management Department is collecting new and gently used coats, gloves and hats for our Tribal youth.  Help spread the warmth and donate to help the youth of our Tribe who may need these items to be more prepared this winter.  Donation boxes will be available in the Community and Government Center lobby from January 2 to January 15, 2018.  If you have or know of a Tribal youth that may be in need of these winter clothing items than contact the Emergency Management Department and inform them of the coat, glove and hat sizes as well as contact info to be notified after these items have been received. Please contact Emergency Management Director at Nelson.Andrewsjr@mwtribe-nsn.gov or at (508) 477-5800 ext. 15 or Emergency Preparedness Specialist at Allyssa.Hathaway@mwtribe-nsn.gov or at (508) 477-5800 ext. 13 for more information. 

The article we are sharing this month addresses Community and Culture in Tribal Child Welfare Laws and Codes as it is written in the “Tribal Child Welfare Codes as Sovereignty in Action” developed by the Native Nations Institute and NICWA.  

The following articles will relate to Peacemaking and the Justice system.  I have edited some of the material to make it cohesive and easy to read.  Various tribes have included Peacemaking in their justice systems and provide a wealth of knowledge about the Peacemaking process.  We will examine the Navajo Peacemaking process.  It is a traditional method of Indigenous justice.  We will continue with Chief Judge Robert Yazzie of the Navajo Nation and look at some of the cases that were handled with Peacemaking.