Message from KEAN Leadership
How do we move forward? It is the question being asked by the world population following the development and release of vaccines to fight the coronavirus after spending a year in quarantine watching national economies collapse.
How do we move forward? It is the question being asked by the U.S. population after a decade of divisive, partisan politics followed by the inauguration of a Democratic president and Congress.
How do we move forward? It is the question being asked by the minority communities of our country following the Black Lives Matter movement and awakening of minority activism in response to the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
Everywhere we look, the question of, “How do we move forward?” is being asked as we deal with the most impactful year on human society in our lifetime.
Likewise, we at KEAN are asking how do WE move forward? How do we deal with the loss of so many elders in our Native and Indigenous communities? How do we continue to make progress toward being an elite alumni association that represents the needs of our Native and Indigenous students, staff, alumni and communities at Oregon State University? How do we reach our past Native and Indigenous alumni to form a base of elders who can provide guidance and wisdom?
We are making small steps in cementing our alumni group as a formidable force within Oregon State. Our voice is getting louder as we get more confident in our position within the community. Our collection of expertise and strengths is growing daily as we continue to build community with our alumni. We have made our presence known within the Native community with our distribution of face masks to help our elders avoid the coronavirus. But much work remains to answer the question, “How do we move forward?”
By bringing together the strengths and perseverance of ALL of our communities.
May we walk in peace with the Creator,
Orman E. Morton III President of the Klatowa Eena Alumni Network
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