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CALIFORNIA INDIAN NEWS
Subject: [Native California Indians] New leader for San Manuels Ramos, cultural officer, named tribe's chairman The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians announced last week the appointment of James Ramos to the tribe's top position of chairman. Ramos, who is also the tribal unity and cultural awareness program director for the tribe, replaces Henry Duro as chairman of the tribe's business committee. The business committee is the top governing body of the tribe, and oversees the day-to-day operations of tribal government, sets policy and serves as the liaison between federal, state and local governments and foreign nations. As chairman, Ramos, 40, said his top priority will be setting new policy and ensuring he is meeting the needs of his fellow tribal members. "I'm going to make sure that the people's voices are heard in these policy decisions," Ramos said. Ramos, of Highland, was elected to the position during the tribe's March 1 election. News reports in the last year regarding errant tribal members accused of conspiring to commit murder and drug trafficking will most likely be an issue Ramos will contend with in his policymaking decisions. "A lot of the issues that are in the paper are issues facing any community, but we have to make sure we have a balanced approach to dealing with these issues," Ramos said, adding that the tribe will be looking into the possibility of establishing youth and crisis intervention programs. Ramos' role as chairman will be one of many hats the tribal member wears. In November, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Ramos to the Native American Heritage Commission, which works to protect American Indian burial and archaeological sites from vandalism and inadvertent destruction, among other things. In 2005, Ramos was the first American Indian elected to the San Bernardino Community College Board of Trustees, where he currently serves as vice president of the board. He also serves as director of the California Indian Cultural Awareness Conference held annually at Cal State San Bernardino. Lynn Valbuena was elected vice chairwoman and replaces Vince Duro. Valbuena served one term as tribal chairwoman and one term as secretary-treasurer. As Chairwoman of the Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Indian Nations since its formation in 1995, Valbuena has advocated for policy, legislative and political issues affecting American Indian tribes. Valbuena also served as secretary for the San Bernardino Valley Lighthouse for the Blind. "I am thankful for the opportunity to serve the people of San Manuel and I am looking forward to working on the numerous challenges that we face," Valbuena said in a news release. "There is important work to be done and I am confident that we have a government organization with the capabilities to do the job." Ramos and Valbuena will assume their new positions on April 1, tribal spokesman Jacob Coin said. Audrey Martinez was re-elected to her post as treasurer, and Larry Hernandez was re-elected to his at-large position, one of three on the business committee, Coin said. Secretary Stephanie Bustamante and at-large members Jamie Barron and Rich Leroy are up for re-election next year, Coin said. Business committee members are elected to 2-year, staggered terms. http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_8516165 Material appearing here is distributed without profit or monitory gain to those who have expressed an interest in receiving the material for research and educational purposes. This is in accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. section 107. |
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