Monday, February 10, 2025
37.1 F
Pawhuska
HomeCommunityOsage Nation's 2025 Strategic Plan Update tour kicks off

Osage Nation’s 2025 Strategic Plan Update tour kicks off

In person meetings to be held this month and February. Virtual meetings are planned throughout March

Going into the 2025 calendar year, the Osage Nation is announcing a Strategic Plan Update Tour to update the Nation’s 25-year Vision & Strategic Plan Summary Report with refined priorities and wishes of the Osage public.

The Nation is inviting constituents to attend any of the nine information sessions, which will be held in Oklahoma, California and Texas communities hosted by the ON Office of Strategic Planning. There will also be virtual information sessions with one that was Gen Z-focused and took place on Dec. 19, and three in-person sessions planned for Oklahoma college campuses.

The first information session took place in Pawhuska on Jan. 6 at the Osage Casino & Hotel.

In 2007, and conducted one year following the ratification of the current Osage Constitutional government, the Nation’s strategic plan took development with a citizen-driven model, according to the initial report released. “The Strategic Plan is a map that outlines the goals set forth by the Osage People to guide elected leaders as they move the Nation forward. The (Nation) is committed to building, with the input of all the Osage people, a plan that will guide the Nation for the next quarter century.”

An updated engagement tour on the Nation’s 25-year strategic plan comes five years after the last multi-community engagement held just before the COVID-19 pandemic. In December 2020, the Nation released a report update on the findings and the 2025 update is intended to focus on the 2026-2030 years span.

On its website, the Strategic Planning Office lists accomplishment examples for the Nation, including:

  • Osage constituent enrollment increased from 9,748 at the end of December 2007 to 22,160 Osage tribal members in 2019. As of 2024, the enrollment number is approximately 25,000.
  • The Nation has established a permanent fund of $30 million to provide financial security for the operation of the Nation’s government.
  • The Osage Veterans Memorial was completed in 2019, and other statues of Osage Chiefs Bigheart and Claremore were installed on the government campus.
  • Establishment of a Tribal Osage Historic Preservation Office that works to take back our historical territory and provides academic resources to respond to consultations with federal and state partners who now defer to Osage on matters relating to graves and sacred sites in the wake of construction, and provides responsible repatriation of traditional items.
  • Development of Harvest Land as an agricultural base to produce healthy food for Osage citizens with a future goal of commercial markets.
  • The Nation purchased Ted Turner’s 43,000-acre ranch, reclaiming a massive tract of land within the heart of the original reservation boundaries and expanding the Nation’s land base.

“The (2025) update aims to refine and renew the strategies, priorities, and desires of the Nation’s constituents for the next five years. It is vital to include all voices of the Nation since the last update in 2020,” according to a news release.

“Our Strategic Plan is a living, breathing document that we must be constantly reevaluating to ensure the government is serving our people,” Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear said in a statement. “It is critical that as many Osages as possible – across all walks of life – are a part of shaping it.”

Save the Date: 2025 Engagement Tour community visits

  • Jan. 6 in Pawhuska 5-8 p.m. at Osage Casino & Hotel, 1421 John Dahl Ave.
  • Jan. 7 in Tulsa 5-8 p.m. at Osage Casino & Hotel, 951 W. 36th St. N.
  • Jan. 8 in Grayhorse Village 5-8 p.m. at the Village Community Building. 
  • Jan. 9 in Ponca City 5-8 p.m. at Osage Casino & Hotel, 64464 US-60.
  • Jan. 10 in Hominy Village 5-8 p.m. at the Village Community Building.
  • Jan. 18 in Carlsbad, Calif. ** POSTPONED ** Date and time to be announced.
  • Jan. 19 in Oakland, Calif. (Bay Area) 12:30-4:30 p.m. at the Executive Inn & Suites, 1755 Embarcadero.
  • Feb. 15 in Katy, Texas (Houston area) 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Location TBA
  • Feb. 16 in Flower Mound, Texas (Dallas-Fort Worth area) noon-4 p.m. Location TBA

Virtual information sessions (all Central Time)

  • March 3 – 3:30-6:30 p.m.
  • March 4 – 4:30-7:30 p.m.
  • March 5 – 5:30-8:30 p.m.
  • March 6 – 6:30-9:30 p.m.
  • March 13 – Gen Z focused – 5:30-8:30 p.m.

College campus visits

  • Feb. 18 at The University of Oklahoma in Norman 5:30-8:30 p.m.
  • Feb. 19 at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater 5:30-8:30 p.m.
  • Feb. 20 at Tulsa Community College 5:30-8:30 p.m.

These information sessions, designed to provide insight into the strategic planning process and to collect information for the upcoming survey, are crucial for shaping the next five years, according to the Strategic Planning Office. The survey, which will be available for all Osage constituents 18 years and older to complete, will be a key tool in gathering our community’s diverse perspectives and priorities. The data collected from these surveys will serve as the foundation for the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan update, which will further support the Osage Nation’s core values: spiritual strength, pride for our heritage, justice, fairness, compassion, respect for and protection of children, elders, all fellow beings, and self.

The Osage Nation Office of Strategic Planning can be reached by email at sgsp@osagenation-nsn.gov or call (918) 287-5450.

View an online copy of the September 2007 Osage Nation 25-year Vision and Strategic Plan Summary Report at: https://s3.amazonaws.com/osagenation-nsn.gov/files/departments/Office-Self-Governance-Planning-Grants-Management/Documents/25%20year%20Strategic%20Plan.pdf

View an online copy of the 2020-2025 Strategic Plan Update at: https://s3.amazonaws.com/osagenation-nsn.gov/files/departments/Office-Self-Governance-Planning-Grants-Management/2021-0330_Strategic-Planning_Strategic-Update-2020-2025-FINAL.pdf

Author

  • Benny Polacca

    Title: Senior Reporter

    Email: bpolacca@osagenation-nsn.gov

    Instagram: @bpolacca

    Topic Expertise: Government, Tribal Government, Community

    Languages spoken: English, basic knowledge of Spanish and French

    Benny Polacca (Hopi/ Havasupai/ Pima/ Tohono O’odham) started working at the Osage News in 2009 as a reporter in Pawhuska, Okla., where he’s covered various stories and events that impact the Osage Nation and Osage people. Those newspaper contributions cover a broad spectrum of topics and issues from tribal government matters to features. As a result, Polacca has gained an immeasurable amount of experience in covering Native American affairs, government issues and features so the Osage readership can be better informed about the tribal current affairs the newspaper covers.

    Polacca is part of the Osage News team that was awarded the Native American Journalists Association's Elias Boudinet Free Press Award in 2014 and has won numerous NAJA media awards, as well as awards from the Oklahoma Press Association and SPJ Oklahoma Pro Chapter, for storytelling coverage and photography.

    Polacca earned his bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University and also participated in the former American Indian Journalism Institute at the University of South Dakota where he was introduced to the basics of journalism and worked with seasoned journalists there and later at The Forum daily newspaper covering the Fargo, N.D. area where he worked as the weeknight reporter.

Get the Osage News by email!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Benny Polacca
Benny Polaccahttps://osagenews.org

Title: Senior Reporter

Email: bpolacca@osagenation-nsn.gov

Instagram: @bpolacca

Topic Expertise: Government, Tribal Government, Community

Languages spoken: English, basic knowledge of Spanish and French

Benny Polacca (Hopi/ Havasupai/ Pima/ Tohono O’odham) started working at the Osage News in 2009 as a reporter in Pawhuska, Okla., where he’s covered various stories and events that impact the Osage Nation and Osage people. Those newspaper contributions cover a broad spectrum of topics and issues from tribal government matters to features. As a result, Polacca has gained an immeasurable amount of experience in covering Native American affairs, government issues and features so the Osage readership can be better informed about the tribal current affairs the newspaper covers.

Polacca is part of the Osage News team that was awarded the Native American Journalists Association's Elias Boudinet Free Press Award in 2014 and has won numerous NAJA media awards, as well as awards from the Oklahoma Press Association and SPJ Oklahoma Pro Chapter, for storytelling coverage and photography.

Polacca earned his bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University and also participated in the former American Indian Journalism Institute at the University of South Dakota where he was introduced to the basics of journalism and worked with seasoned journalists there and later at The Forum daily newspaper covering the Fargo, N.D. area where he worked as the weeknight reporter.

RELATED ARTICLES

In Case You Missed it...

Upcoming Events