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Northwest Area Foundation Awards $2.46 Million Grant to Cheyenne River Sioux Nation – Supports Reservation’s Initiatives to Reduce Deep Poverty

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St. Paul, Minn., (July 29, 2008) – The Northwest Area Foundation has made a $2.46 million grant to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Ventures organization to support its 10-year strategic plan to reduce its 46 percent poverty rate on the reservation in central South Dakota. This is the Foundation’s second grant to Tribal Ventures in support of this initiative.

“This grant speaks to the progress the Cheyenne River Tribal Ventures has made in reaching its poverty reduction goals,” said Tony Genia, senior program officer at Northwest Area Foundation who works with Native American tribes. “The Cheyenne River Tribal Ventures program is unique, not just because it is a reservation-based poverty reduction program, but also because it relies primarily on working through collaborative partnerships with proven or promising organizations to implement strategies.”

The Foundation’s initial $2.5 million grant to Cheyenne River Tribal Ventures in March 2006 funded the following strategies: individual, family and community development; community capacity building; and, economic development.

Among the accomplishments:
• The creation of eight Learning Centers that provide education and tribal services in remote and isolated regions of the 2.8 million acre reservation in central South Dakota.
• Over 200 students enrolled in GED programs, with 20 already receiving their degrees, representing a significant increase in graduates since 2006.
• Financial literacy training for youth, paid internships, and Individual Development Accounts (IDA) that teach young people the value of saving and investing.
• Creation of the Cheyenne River Chamber of Commerce that currently boasts more than 40 members.
• Developing a Lakota Daycare Immersion program in partnership with Presentation College that emphasizes preschool learning in the Lakota language.

“Tribal Ventures is going phenomenally well. Poverty reduction is hard work, but it’s great work. There’s a lot of heart and commitment in it,” said Tanya Fiddler, board chair of Cheyenne River Tribal Ventures. “This grant will enable us to move ahead with some expanded asset building opportunities for the communities in addition to the Learning Centers and programs and services currently in place.”

To listen to a podcast featuring Tanya Fiddler and Tony Genia speaking more about the Cheyenne River Tribal Ventures accomplishments, visit http://programs.nwaf.org/pr/nwaf/info/electronic.asp.

The Northwest Area Foundation is dedicated to supporting efforts by the people, organizations and communities in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Oregon and Washington reduce poverty and achieve sustainable prosperity. These states were served by the Great Northern Railway, founded by James J. Hill. In 1934, Hill’s son, Louis W. Hill, established the Foundation.