April 8 - Seminole Tribe of Florida

The Seminole Tribune 6 April 8, 2005Iretta Tiger(L-R) Matt Ward, UM Native American Recruiter Miss Seminole JoJo Osceola, UM mascot Sebastian,Hollywood Council Representative Max Osceola, Headmaster of University School Dr. Chermack.Miss Seminole Hosts UM PresentationBy Iretta TigerHOLLYWOOD — “As a college boundSeminole student, I think it’s very important toencourage others to continue their education,” saidMiss Seminole JoJo Osceola.On March 14, Osceola, who was recentlyadmitted into the University of Miami, organized aUM presentation for her Seminole peers. Althoughshe is set to begin classes in August 2005, shewants to start sooner and take summer courses.The evening began with a dinnersponsored by Hollywood CouncilRepresentative Max B. Osceola, Jr., a UMalumni. JoJo’s mother, Virginia Osceola,helped out by making fry bread and sofkee.The evening came about through theencouragement of Matt Ward, the NativeAmerican recruiter for UM.“Matt [Ward] heard about the highschool drop out rate among the Seminoleyouth,” said Osceola. “And said I should dosomething.”Osceola was so determined to help herpeers that she oversaw every detail, from creatingand passing out fliers to contactingSeminole Broadcasting and The SeminoleTribune. The students were first shown a 20minute film about UM, which emphasized thehands-on experience each student receivesfrom the beginning of their education.After the film, a special guest joinedin the presentation. Sebastian, UM’s mascot,had Miss Seminole and Max Osceola join himin doing the UM cheer. The UM representativesspoke in turn about their experience andwhat to expect should any of them decide toattend the college.Miss Seminole presented the representativeswith a gift bag of Seminole culture. Oneitem in the gift bag was the Seminole flag andshe explained the meaning of the colors.Councilman Osceola encouraged thestudents to consider continuing their education.“You need to look beyond 12thgrade,” said Osceola. “The Seminole Tribedepends on you. The key is education, especiallyfor your future.”Miss Seminole closed the presentationEach year the National Haskell AlumniAssociation from Haskell Indian Nations Universityin Lawrence, Kan., honors alumni for outstandingcontributions to Haskell, their Indian community, andto Alumni activities.This year, the Honor goes to DempseyMicco, and Barney Old Coyote. Dempsey isby saying, “I encourage you guys to go out and get aneducation and come back to the Tribe so that we allcan benefit from your education.”The evening ended with the students posingfor pictures with Sebastian and gathering informationon UM. For more information on UM, please visitwww.miami.edu.Iretta TigerMiss Seminole JoJo Osceola and Hollywood CouncilmanMax Oscoela.Haskell’s 2005 Alumni of the YearSeminole/Creek from Weleetka, Okla. and Barney isCrow from Montana.The Honor Dinner for these two will be May13 at the Holidone in Lawrence, Kan. at 6:30 p.m.The cost is $25.00 per person. For more information,please Louis Taylor at (505) 831-6522 or e-mailLJT50@aol.com.