By Whitney Red Corn
I am excited to announce my candidacy for Osage Nation Congress.
My name is Whitney Red Corn. I am the granddaughter of Wakon and Sandra Red Corn and the great-granddaughter of Raymond and Waltena Red Corn. My Osage name is Me-che-ee and I belong to the 𐓲𐓣𐓻𐓪 𐓷𐓘𐓯𐓰𐓘𐓤𐓟 clan. I live in Bixby, Oklahoma, where I direct a staff of 22 teachers in an Early Learning Center. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Organizational Leadership and Master’s in Leadership.
That passion for nurturing personal growth is why I am running for Osage Congress. Our nation needs to move forward and grow. We have done much vital work to preserve and champion our language, culture and sovereignty. But, now that we have a solid foundation established, we need to propel our Nation and its people forward.
I enjoy training up leaders, but my deepest passion is for our youngest members. Our children are our future, and our legacy. Every Osage child deserves the best education our resources can provide. We should equip our children for success from birth to early adulthood. We do an excellent job with scholarships in higher education, but we need to commit more resources to the preparation of these young Osages for that higher education. Our constitution demands nothing less.
The Osage constitution mandates a system of high-quality early childhood learning programs for our children. If elected to Congress, I would work to ensure that all Osage children have access to early childhood education. I would also work to ensure that our educational leaders have the resources they need to do their very best for our children. Working together we can ensure that when our children attend public schools, private schools, WELA, or Daposka Ahnkodapi, they are seen, heard and supported.
Education and training are investments in the Osage people that pay dividends for a lifetime. Educated men and women in our community and our workforce attract yet more Osage businesspersons, artists, teachers, health professionals and legal professionals, building up our communities and ensuring future generations of Osages make a positive impact here, and elsewhere. Osages all over the planet defend our freedom, enrich the lives of their communities and do tremendous work. Those Osages should feel connected to our people, be equipped to pursue their dreams, and be heard by their leaders.
The preamble of our constitution states that we have come together as a People to strengthen our government in order to preserve and perpetuate a full and abundant Osage way of life that benefits every Osage, both living and future generations. As we come together in this election, I humbly ask for the opportunity to serve you in Congress.
Editor’s Note: Candidate statements and announcements are not edited by the Osage News. They are a free submission offered to candidates of the 2022 Osage Nation General Election.
