National Park Service Grant for Huna Tribal House Exterior House Screen Project

STATUTORY AUTHORITY: National Historic Preservation Act 16 USC 470a, as amended (PL-89-665.)

STATEMENT OF JOINT OBJECTIVES/PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN: The objectives of this project are to complete a house screen to be displayed on the outside front of the Tribal House; to preserve ethnographic resources associated with the Huna Tlingit; to ensure that traditional skills and knowledge are passed from elders to youth; to interpret the project to the public as well as Hoonah community members; to document this and previous Tribal House cultural projects; and to complete a strategic plan for adorning the interior of the Tribal House.

The house screen is a vital cultural component of the Huna Tribal House. Traditional Tlingit houses included carved and painted exterior screens as a means of identifying the affiliation of the residents and capturing their history and ancestral knowledge. HIA is the sole entity with the cultural expertise, traditional craftsmen skills, and cultural authority to complete the screen.

Second, the completion of the screen will provide an opportunity to gather, compile, and preserve relevant ethnographic information from published literature, oral history audio/video recordings, and ongoing elder interviews regarding the history and culture of the Huna Tlingit clans. This information will be used to design the screen and will be retained for future use by tribal members.

The project will also provide a venue for skilled craftsmen to pass traditional skills associated with form line design, carving, weaving, and adzing to another generation. The Master and Assistant Carvers will instruct Hoonah City Schools (HCS) students, other community youth, and community members on a weekly basis. Importantly, the carving work site will serve as an informal classroom where craftsmen convey not only traditional skills, but also oral histories, life ways, and Tlingit laws and protocols. Traditionally, resource gathering activities in homeland were one means by which tribal elders transmitted traditional knowledge, cultural practices, and social mores to tribal youth. Unfortunately, an array of social and regulatory changes has drawn the Tlingit away from their traditional seasonal rounds in Glacier Bay, reducing opportunities for intergenerational learning. The Service and HIA believe that these ethnographic resources will be preserved by providing a venue that closely mirrors the traditional learning structure of the Tlingit whereby culture bearers convey traditional knowledge to youth in the course of everyday work.

Last, the project will allow HIA to prepare an administrative history of this, and past efforts associated with cultural elements completed for the tribal house. An administrative history will serve as an important record of the project, including narrative documentation of the chronology of the projects, personnel involved, decisions rendered, etc. as well as an archival collection of photographs, recordings, etc. In addition, the project will assist HIA in identifying the types of utilitarian items necessary to furnish the interior of the Tribal House such that furnishing can be produced in future years.

The partner, in cooperation with the National Park Service will: 1. Create a traditional form line design for the exterior front of the Huna Tribal House, transfer the design to cedar planks, and carve and paint the design.
2. Assign one HIA staff, the Master Carver, as the HIA Project Lead for the project to be responsible for all project activities and products including the house screen carving, travel logistics, purchases and budgeting, and general program oversight; and to liaison with the Service Project Manager.
3. Coordinate the project closely with the Service Project Manager and other Service staff responsible for tribal house design and construction to ensure that the house screen meets design needs and architectural standards.
4. Maintain a daily work log of carving and other associated activities.
5. Maintain a visitor log of local and other individuals who visit the carving project.
6. With the Service Project Manager, Service Interpretive staff, and Huna Heritage Foundation (HHF), collaboratively plan and implement a strategic planning.
7. Document project progress with still photographs and/or videography. Provide copies of photographs videos, other documentary material, with release forms from participants for use by the Service each week.
8. With the Service Project Manager and HHF, complete an administrative history of projects to date (FY 11-13) including written project documentation to include: a narrative documenting important dates and decisions; references for relevant literature, oral history, and photographs; guidelines for archiving project photographs and video footage; and narrative for each cultural element (interior house screen, exterior house screen, 4 house posts).
9. Provide a narrative trip report with photographs of museum/tribal house visits.

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE INVOLVEMENT -Substantial Involvement :3. Assign the Service¿s Project Manager and the Park Management Assistant to research cultural themes, oral histories, traditional designs, etc. for incorporation into the house screen design, administrative history, and associated project documentation. The Service Project Manager will meet frequently with the Master Carver and Assistant Carvers t Lead to convey appropriate anthropological information for screen design and review house screen design.
4. Assign the Service Project Manager to facilitate meetings with clan elders to obtain cultural information for house screen design and capture oral histories associated with the final design. Record and transcribe/translate interviews with elders and/or meeting minutes of consultation meetings with elders and/or other tribal members.
5. Assess project progress and identify opportunities and/or challenges.
6. Assign the Service Project Manager to liaison between the HIA Master Carver and Service architectural staff and contractors to ensure that the final house screen design, dimensions and materials are compatible with the Huna Tribal House architectural design.
7. Assign the Service Project Manager and Park Interpretive staff to develop and/or assist in developing both on- and off-site educational and outreach opportunities related to the carving effort and the overall Huna Tribal House Project.

SINGLE-SOURCE JUSTIFICATION: Department of the Interior Policy (505 DM 2) requires a written justification which explains why competition is not practicable for each single-source award . The National Park Service did not solicit full and open competition for this award based the following criteria: Unique Qualifications, The Hoonah Indian Associationis the only entity that can effectively execute this program as it is the tribal government for the Huna Tlingit who claim Glacier Bay National Park as homeland, is the only entity representing and employing individuals with the cultural expertise and cultural authority to complete the work, and has the administrative infrastructure to achieve program objectives.

Technical contact information: Mary Beth Moss, mary_beth_moss@nps.gov,907-945-3230,National Park Service, Alaska Region.
End of FOA