www.epa.gov
MAKING A IN THE COMMUNITY:
The Superfund Job Training Initiative on Navajo Nation Lands
INTRODUCTION
The Navajo Nation Superfund Job Training Initiative (SuperJTI)
is an environmental remediation job readiness program that
provided career development opportunities for 19 trainees
living on the Navajo Nation. Through a partnership between the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Navajo
Nation's Community Housing & Infrastructure Department
(CHID) and Environmental Protection Agency, Navajo Nation
Super JTI provided local job seekers with new skills and work
experience linked to construction and cleanup near Gallup,
New Mexico, and on Navajo Nation lands. EPA's goal is to help
the community create job opportunities and partnerships that
remain in place for the long term.
CANDIDATE OUTREACH, RECRUITMENT
AND SCREENING: OCTOBER 2012
The Navajo Nation is nearly the size of West Virginia. The
area includes over 500 abandoned uranium mines.
Navajo Nation SuperJTI staff and the project's community liaison Joanna Austin-Manygoats reached out to the Gallup, New Mexico
community, sending out flyers and hosting orientation sessions to publicize the program and attract interested candidates. Area organizations
and a local newspaper also advertised the program. In October 2012, over 60 people came to the program's eight orientation sessions.
Following these sessions, more than 50 people completed a preliminary testing stage. Thirty-nine people participated in program tryouts.
The tryouts included leadership, team building and role-playing activities, a physical fitness evaluation, and observation by a team of
evaluators from the project's partners. Nineteen of the 20 trainees selected during tryouts went on to complete the program.
SITE HISTORY
The lands of the Navajo Nation include 27,000 square miles in three states in the Four Corners region of the United States. The
lands are rich in uranium, a radioactive ore long in high demand for nuclear power and nuclear weapons. In total, from 1944 to
1986, nearly four million tons of uranium ore came from Navajo Nation lands, under leases with the Navajo Nation. Many Navajo
people worked in the uranium mines and mills, often living and raising families nearby. Today, long after the closure of the mines
and mills, a legacy of uranium contamination remains. There are over 500 abandoned uranium mines as well as homes and
drinking water sources with elevated levels of radiation located on Navajo Nation lands. Potential health effects from exposure
include lung cancer from breathing in radioactive particles, as well as bone cancer and impaired kidney function from exposure
to radionuclides in drinking water.
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EPA has been working in partnership with the Navajo Nation and other federal agencies for two decades to address contaminated
areas. Today, this partnership remains focused on addressing immediate risks to public health and finding permanent, long-term
solutions for remaining contamination on Navajo Nation lands.
I U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
I Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
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TRAINING: OCTOBER— NOVEMBER 2012
The Navajo Nation SuperJTI training program took place in
Gallup, New Mexico, over three weeks. It included:
Pre-Employment Training: Trainees completed courses in
environmental justice, interpersonal communication, cultural
competence and effective work habits. EPA contractor Skeo
Solutions provided the training.
Technical Training: Trainees completed the 40-hour
Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response
(HAZWOPER) training and CPR and first aid courses provided
by Acme Environmental and the American Red Cross. Trainees
also completed courses in radon measurement and mitigation
provided by Western Regional Radon Training Center.
Upon completion of the program, trainees possess the
marketable skills needed to begin a successful career in
environmental remediation and become valuable members of
the workforce in their community.
JOB PLACEMENT AND FOLLOW UP:
DECEMBER 2012 — MAY 2013
After graduation, trainees applied for available cleanup
positions with CHID and other area employers. Several
graduates now have positions in radon remediation and
construction. Remaining graduates are interviewing with area
employers, pending the availability of cleanup jobs.
Navajo Nation SuperJTFs community liaison Joanna Austin-
Manygoats followed up with the graduates for six months after
the program. During this time, graduates were encouraged to
seek employment with CHID or other area employers in the
field of environmental remediation.
Navajo Nation SuperJTI is one of many SuperJTI projects
nationwide that are making a difference for unemployed
and underemployed citizens living in communities affected
by Superfund sites.
NAVAJO NATION SUPERJTI TRAINEES:
Live on or near the Navajo Nation. One
hundred percent of the trainees (1 9 people)
live on or near Navajo Nation lands.
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Include men and women. Thirty-two percent
of the trainees (six people) were women
and 68 percent of the trainees (13 people)
were men.
Graduation for the program's 19 trainees took place
at Memorial Hall in Gallup, New Mexico, in December
2012. Navajo Nation President Ben Shelley attended the
ceremony and handed out certificates to the graduates.
The program also included remarks from project partners
as well as the graduates.
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SUPERJTI COMMUNITY PROFILES: Making a Difference
With years of experience as aNavajo translator and interpreter, Joanna Austin-Manygoats
came highly recommended as a community partner for the Navajo Nation SuperJTI.
^^. Having worked with the Navajo Superfund Program and Division of Natural
Resources for over 30 years, she knew the position would be a good fit.
From the beginning of the program, Joanna was impressed by the selection
A process. She liked the hands-on activities and thought the process efficiently
, identified qualified candidates. During the training, Joanna was surprised
by how the students opened up. "The cultural competency training helped
the students view themselves from a different perspective and gave them
the boost to become very inquisitive and participatory," she noted. Joanna
said the graduates left with increased self-determination and good skills under
their belts. She feels the graduates now have the confidence to broaden their job
searches beyond the Navajo Community, creating new avenues for employment.
Joanna greatly appreciated the opportunity to participate in the program and looks
forward to partnering with EPA in the future.
Brandi Moore was considering a move from Phoenix to her hometown of
Gallup, New Mexico, when she read about SuperJTI in a local newspaper. She
was immediately interested in learning more. "It was something new that I
didn't think I would have the opportunity to do," she reflected. She told her
family about the opportunity as well. After participating in recruitment and
try outs, she and her mother were both accepted into the program. Brandi
found the training to be a positive experience, and most enjoyed the initial
pre-employment activities. "The training was fun and beneficial," she
recalled. "It felt more and more comfortable as we (program participants)
made friends. When we see each other now, we say hello. The training
really helped us." Looking forward, Brandi would like to work for an
environmental services company and is currently looking for a job.
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Clarence Montgomery read about the Navajo Nation SuperJTI in the newspaper.
k With years of environmental work already under his belt, he was looking to
^k increase his level of environmental knowledge and focus on Navajo Nation
. lands. After being chosen for the program, Clarence was impressed by the
quality of the training and the caliber of the other participants. "The training
was very useful," he noted, "and I met a lot of good people."
Following the program, Clarence has worked in the environmental field
installing protective plastic liners. He credits SuperJTI with helping him
pursue needed certifications and providing him with the knowledge he
needed to stay abreast of changes in the environmental field. "The program
gave us insight into what's happening in the world, especially [on the Navajo
fation] near Church Rock," he reflected. "SuperJTI gave me knowledge that I
e one day to pass on to others."
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What is the SuperJTI Program?
The Superfund Job Training Initiative, or SuperJTI, supports job readiness programs in
communities affected by nearby Superfund sites and encourages the employment of
trainees at local site cleanups. The SuperJTI program combines extensive classroom
instruction with hands-on exercises for each participant. Upon completion of the
program, each participant possesses the marketable skills required to become a valuable
member of the community's workforce. EPA offers SuperJTI training at no cost to trainins
participants.
For more information, please visit: www.epa.gov/superfund/community/sfjti
Or contact SuperJTI's National Program Managers:
Melissa Friedland
EPA Regions 1-5
(703) 603-8864
friedland.melissa@epa.gov
Viola Cooper
EPA Regions 6-10
(415) 972-3243
cooper.viola@epa.gov
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation (5204P)
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20460
.3-96FS FS I May 2014 I
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