CHEROKEE, NC, March 19, 2008 — Cherokee Preservation Foundation (CPFdn) announced today that Shannon Bark has joined its staff as a program assistant.
Bark’s responsibilities include leading CPFdn’s support of efforts to revitalize the Cherokee language and development of the Cherokee New Schools project. She was a Cherokee Language Instructor for Cherokee Central Schools, serving as the lead teacher for 7th and 8th grade Cherokee language classes before coming to CPFdn.
Bark earned her Bachelor of Science in Sociology at Western Carolina University and minored in Cherokee Studies. An enrolled member of the EBCI, she is proud of her Cherokee, Hualapai and Hidatsa heritage, and is actively involved in preserving the Cherokee language and the Tribe’s culture.
About Cherokee Preservation Foundation
Cherokee Preservation Foundation (www.cpfdn.org) was established on November 14, 2000, as part of the Second Amendment to the Tribal-State Compact between the EBCI and the State of North Carolina. It is an independent nonprofit foundation funded by the EBCI from gaming revenues generated by the Tribe. CPFdn is not part of or associated with any for-profit gaming entity. Since CPFdn’s inception in 2000, it has made 447 grants totaling more than $37 million to EBCI and regional projects and programs that address cultural preservation, economic development and job creation, and environmental renewal and protection. Every dollar of CPFdn support has been matched by $1.38 in secured grants or other funding or in-kind resources, making CPFdn’s total contribution to the region more than $89 million.
