Ted Wright
The interim general manager at the Sitka Tribe of Alaska can settle into his office. The Tribal Council hired Ted Wright as the full-time general manager at a meeting last night.
Wright has actually been here before. He served as general manager of the Sitka Tribe from 1992 to 1995 and was on the tribal council from 1982 to 1985. Since September, he’s been serving as interim general manager, and he was clear back then that he would seek the position full-time.
“I’ve been wanting to come back for years, really,” he said at Wednesday’s meeting. “It’s just a question of employment in Sitka. It’s hard to find. The kind of work I do is not available very often.”
Before his return to Sitka, Wright was managing the Lummi Indian Business Council in Bellingham, Washington. About 10 years ago, he also served as general manager of the Douglas Indian Association in Juneau, when the organization was rebuilding. He’s also worked as a consultant to other tribal organizations.
Wright holds a doctorate in education from Penn State University and did his undergrad work at Southern Oregon State College, which is now Southern Oregon University. He’s a 1974 graduate of Sitka High School, and an enrolled citizen of the Tribe. He taught at Mt. Edgecumbe High School when it first re-opened.
He was also among 13 or 14 candidates for the job, says Tribe Chairman Woody Widmark. The council interviewed three or four finalists, before settling on Wright.
“No pun intended, he’s the Wright guy,” Widmark joked. But puns aside, Widmark says Wright impressed the council, especially during his time as interim manager.
“He really wanted this position. He’s given his heart and soul as an interim (manager),” Widmark said. “He’s a hard worker. His passion is the tribe, basically. He’ll do good.”
And he’ll have plenty to do. Wright says it’s going to be a busy year for the Tribe.
“Like you’ve heard, we have a lot of facilities issues, those need to be dealt with,” Wright said. “We need to grow in some areas where we may have retrenched over the years for various reasons, having to do with social services, behavioral health, treating the whole person when it comes to the various issues our tribal citizens deal with. I think we’re going to have a whole lot of momentum in that area. That and economic development.”
The Tribe is also gearing up to raise more public awareness toward its feelings on Sitka’s commercial herring fishery and is considering the role it should play in re-establishing the Southeast Alaska Indian Cultural Center, a separate nonprofit organization which suffered major setbacks after alleged financial mismanagement.
The Tribe’s general manager job is similar to the municipal administrator’s position in city government. Wright will oversee day-to-day operations, but ultimately it’s the nine-member Tribal Council that makes final decisions and sets the agenda for the year ahead. The council meets in retreat over the weekend to set those long term goals.
“They may give me a whole different set of marching orders,” Wright said. “It’s not my decision which way we go. I just carry out the orders.”
