Shiprock school shines at solar competition
When all was said and done, teamwork, timing and design of their car are what helped the Bombers from Mesa Elementary School in Shiprock win this year's 2013 Zia Solar Car Race.

NHA receives warning from HUD

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has sent a letter to the Navajo Housing Authority warning the entity it is spending its federal funding much too slowly and is in violation of the Native American Housing and Self-Determination Act. "In reviewing NHA's PY (program year) Annual Performance Report," the April 30 letter reads, "the Northern Plains Office of Native American Programs determined that a majority of the program activities ... had not been accomplished or been only partially accomplished."
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icon WR superintendent: No crisis here 

"We are not in crisis," the beleaguered superintendent of the Window Rock Unified School District said Wednesday. Deborah Jackson-Dennison, who came back in 2009 to run the school district, said media headlines in recent days indicating that the district is facing a crisis are completely inaccurate.

icon Naa'bik'iyáti' to hear report on NGS 

The Navajo Nation Council's Naa'bik'iyáti' Committee will meet today, May 16, at 10 a.m. to hear a report on the Navajo Generating Station and Salt River Project response discussion. On May 7, owners of the coal-fired power plant objected to changes made by the Council to the resolution and lease extension for NGS.

icon NCI continues to seek funding, faces closure next month 

The future remains uncertain for the area's only non-medical alcohol crisis intervention and treatment center. The Na'nizhoozhi Center Inc., better known as NCI, continues to seek funding in order to continue providing treatment and services to individuals who are alcohol dependent.

icon Protestors oppose uranium minding on Mt. Taylor 

In an effort to oppose uranium mining from occurring at the base of Mt. Taylor, protesters and environmentalists held poster signs last Friday for Albuquerque commuters to see that read "Protect Mt. Taylor," "Stop contaminating indigenous lands" and "Uranium harms communities."

icon Carl back in good graces with HUD 

he U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is lifting its suspension of former Navajo Housing Authority CEO Chester Carl following his acquittal of federal corruption charges last Thursday. "Once there's been an acquittal, the suspension is lifted fairly immediately," said HUD spokeswoman Donna White in a telephone interview.

icon More slush fund charges filed 

More charges have been filed by the Navajo Nation's special prosecution in connection with the ongoing investigation into allegations of misuse of tribal discretionary funds. The charges filed on Tuesday in Window Rock District Court were against Navajo Nation Council Delegate David Tom and Victoria Cecil, am employees within the Office of the Speaker of the Navajo Nation.

icon Reagan accidentally shot by 'Apache' during filming 

Filming on the Navajo Reservation was still in its heyday a half century ago with several movies - and some television westerns - being filmed here every summer. According to the Navajo Times of the second week of May 1963, "McClintock," a western starring John Wayne, had put out the word that it needed 16 Navajos to work as extras and "The Greatest Story ever Told," a movie based on the life of Christ, would be using as many as 184 Navajos for scenes to be shot here.

icon Police Report 

Shiprock man gets 50 months in stabbing. Shiprock man was sentenced in federal court in Albuquerque Tuesday to 50 months in prison after pleading guilty to assault and firearm charges. In his plea agreement, Lancelot Lapahie, 25, said that during the late hours of March 23 and early hours of March 24, 2012, he was drinking alcohol with several friends when an argument broke out.

icon Miners: BHP mine a good deal for tribe 

At the 8050 dragline, Henry C. Begay has a unique view of the coal that is extracted at Navajo Mine. The intricate work Begay completes with the dragline can be described as a dance between the large machinery and the layers of Earth it scoops in search of coal.

icon Shelly to feds: keep your promises 

Navajo President Ben Shelly joined other tribal leaders in the nation's capital last week to engage lawmakers in conversations about federal trust responsibilities and obligations to tribes as Congress considers the 2014 budget.

icon NHA celebrates 50th anniversary 

Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent on building new homes on the reservation and thousands of Navajo families have gone from living in hogans without running water and electricity to brand new homes with all of the amenities found in homes off the reservation.

icon Tribe creates energy company to oversee potential mine purchase 

The Navajo Nation Council passed legislation to create an energy company to oversee the purchase, ownership, and operation of Navajo Mine.

icon Police Blotter: Man struck by car near Gallup 

A Tohatchi man was reported to still be in serious condition Tuesday at the Gallup Indian Medical Center after being struck by a car on Saturday The accident occurred April 27 at about 11:30 p.m. on U.S. Highway 491 about two miles north of Gallup.







icon 'Star Wars' to be dubbed into Navajo 

Coming as a surprise to everyone, especially members of the Navajo Tribe, Obi-Wan Kenobi will soon say, "May the Force be with you" in the Diné language. Navajo members will soon be able to hear the beloved character from the "Star Wars" saga say this and more as the Navajo Nation Museum, Navajo Parks and Recreation, and Lucasfilm, Ltd. have joined forces to dub Episode IV of the classic space fantasy film into the Navajo language.

icon Police employees file 100-page complaint against boss 

Eleven employees of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety last Thursday filled a massive complaint against the division's director, John Billison, charging him with using Gestapo tactics in running his division. The 100-page compliant filed before the Navajo Nation Labor Commission was signed by Emmett Yazzie, Yvonne Gorman, Anna Tsosie, Marvin Curley, Cornelia Tso, Esther Charley, Eric Francisco, Henry Moore, Stanley Ashley, Dave Johnson and Robert Platero.

icon Police Report 

Low Mountain man pleads guilty to kidnapping. PHOENIX - On April 22, Brian Douglas Kanuho, 47, of Low Mountain, Ariz., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow to 204 months imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release. Kanuho pleaded guilty on Feb. 27, 2013, to kidnapping.

icon NGS bill tabled, Naize to form negotiating team 

After spending hours locked in debate, the Navajo Nation Council decided to table legislation to extend the lease for Navajo Generating Station until April 29 and directed Speaker Johnny Naize to immediately form a negotiating team composed of delegates. This negotiating team would discuss amendments made April 17 to the legislation with NGS owners or representatives.

icon Shelly: Tribe will need all energy sources

The tribe's future could be determined by continuing to tap into its natural resources while transitioning from the current state of coal usage. That is the message Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly delivered in the state of the nation address, all in the Diné language, to the Navajo Nation Council Monday on the first day of the spring session.

icon Navajo families help create five-year uranium cleanup plan 

The meeting room for the Uranium Contamination Stakeholder Workshop was packed with more than 200 tribal officials, federal representatives and Navajo families affected by uranium mining on the Navajo Reservation attending.

icon Code Talker Albert Smith passes at 88 

Another Navajo Code Talker has departed this world. Navajo Code Talker Albert Smith, 88, has died, according to his family. Smith was born on Dec. 13, 1924 and was Salt People Clan, born for Black Streak Wood People Clan.

icon Police Report 

Man shot during tussle over gun: Navajo police are investigating a shooting that occurred near Chinle on April 7. It began with a call from Johnson Albert, 58, of Chinle calling police reporting that he had been hit over the head with a gun.

icon Obama seeks funding for some tribal programs 

President Barack Obama is seeking increased funding for a handful of tribal programs, including the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, in the budget proposal he unveiled April 10.