.entry-date::after {content: ” by Val Niehaus”;} March 1, 2017 – Full Issue A new grant has been awarded to the FCP Information Technology (IT) department this year, which is administered through the Administration for Native Americans (ANA). It is a grant titled Fostering Independence, Leadership and Mentoring (FILM) and its focus is on educating youth in the skills of video production. The goal will be to enable youth to have their voices expressed in a creative way and to learn all the tools of the trade involved. This grant will be in place for the next three years and the youth who have participated in the program will then be mentors for future participants. David Herkert, FILM coordinator – level 3 technician, is the mastermind behind this project, working on it with the help of his IT teammates. Herkert envisioned this back in 2014 and with hard work and dedication he has seen this dream come true. He says, “Giving these students the ability to present and showcase their voices are what this is all about. It will help raise their self-esteem and encourage them to explore different issues they may be interested in. It will be helpful in their schooling and will inspire them to create in the video arena. Maybe it will even lead to jobs in the future in video production.” Herkert has an extensive resume when it comes to video production. His background includes 20+ years of experience in producing 30-60 second commercials for three different companies in the tri-state region of Missouri, southern Illinois and Kentucky. Prior to that, he had been the director of the student-run television station at Southern Illinois University. During this time, he provided a 24-hour programming schedule that included student-produced shows such as soap operas, news shows, narratives, documentaries, music videos and talk shows. FILM will consist of 20-25 different workshops starting in April and running throughout the summer months when it will be most intensive. During these workshops, the students will learn about script writing, directing, producing, set design, and even some acting. If there are drama students in the community, this is a perfect time to present your talent in front of a camera. Along with these workshops comes working with equipment, which Herkert says is state-of-the-art and includes studio equipment, a master control room, a couple of editing bays, and field production equipment. The program is aimed towards students in the age range of 13-18 and who must meet certain educational criteria to participate. It is open to FCP tribal member youth first and then as time goes on, spaces will open to community members and non-tribal youth. In addition, having the drive to succeed, ambition and creativity never hurts in being selected to participate in this program. Eugene Shawano Jr., tribal administrator, says, “My belief is, the youth are very good teachers when given the chance to work with each other without our interference. I also hope that they take this challenge to produce something that not just works within the group but that can be a model for ALL youth in this country. This will and can be an amazing project when you allow young minds to create.” Chris Luter, chief information officer, stressed, “The goal here isn’t to film the latest powwow or to talk about the language. The goal is to talk about what the kids want to talk about—the problems they’re facing and the things they want to have a voice around. This has been made very loud and clear from Council and Administration. There might be some touchy subjects that students may reach into here and that’s going to be okay.” Overseeing this program will be an advisory board which will be made up of nine people, including both tribal high school/college students, tribal members, IT employees and education employees. The board will lend advice to the pre-planning of shows and the film production. Herkert says, “I met with everyone who is on this team and I feel everyone has a great ability to contribute to this. Each person has talents that they can bring to help guide the students in this project.” This project is going to be the start of an amazing creative outlet for the youth to express themselves and show what matters most to them. Herkert says if this program takes off, “These tribal youth will be the pathfinders leading the way in the tribe’s pursuit of a television channel/station. This idea may be a year or two away, but building content and building the talent pool for this endeavor will be the keystone for building a great communications tool for the tribe and a voice from FCP to the outside world.” He also mentions, “I want to thank everyone who has been involved in the project, especially the FCP Grants department. Without their help this would not be possible.” This is a groundbreaking and most up-to-date program for this day and age. It will bring many future opportunities for the tribe and it will show the next generation what they can really do and accomplish. The youth that start this program are going to be the pioneers of something that will eventually be an astounding achievement for this community! Stay tuned for upcoming articles about this project and what it will have to offer. Interested youth between the ages of 13-18 may contact David Herkert at David.Herkert@fcpotawatomi-nsn.gov