DOINews: National Native American and Alaska Native Heritage Month – November 2014

October 30, 2014

To: All DOI Employees

From: John W. Burden, Director, Office of Civil Rights

Subject: National Native American and Alaska Native Heritage Month – November 2014

The Department of the Interior (DOI) joins the Nation in observing National Native American/Alaska Native Heritage Month, November 1-30, 2014. The national theme is “Native Pride and Spirit: Yesterday, Today and Forever.”

In observance of Native American/Alaska Native Heritage Month, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and the U.S. Department of Energy are sponsoring a program on November 5, 2014, 10:00 a.m. to 11:15 a.m., in the OPM Alan Campbell Auditorium at 1900 E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. The keynote speaker is A. Joseph Sarcinella, Senior Advisor for Native American Affairs, U.S. Department of Defense. Employees unable to go to the OPM Campbell Auditorium may participate by webcast at http://new.livestream.com/OPMWebcast/20141105month. A captioned version of the program is available at http://recapd.com/w-ed5dob. Following the program, the BIA is hosting a Traditional Native Food Sampling at 12:00 p.m. in the DOI Main Interior Building, Room 4623.

To register for the program, please go to the DOI Learn link https://gm2.geolearning.com/geonext/doi/coursesummary.CourseCatalog.geo?id=152235. The program is creditable for one hour of EEO training.

Also, the BIA is sponsoring a presentation by Keith Colston and traditional dance performers on November 19, 2014. The cultural presentation takes place at 11:00 a.m. in the DOI Bison Bistro. Questions about the program and presentation and requests for reasonable accommodation may be directed to the BIA Equal Employment Opportunity Officer at Janeen_Birckhead@bia.gov or (202) 513-0746.

Employees outside the D.C. Metro area may contact their servicing EEO Office or check their bureau website for information about Native American/Alaska Native Heritage Month observances in their local area. DOI managers, supervisors, and employees are encouraged to participate. Attendance requires supervisory approval.