President Barack Obama speaks to the Choctaw Nation in Durant, Oklahoma, on July 15, 2015. Photo by Choctaw Nation / Facebook
The Choctaw Nation and its partners have secured $60 million in federal funding since being designated a Promise Zone in January 2014, The Oklahoman reports. The money has supported a wide range of projects in a 10-county area in the southeastern part of the state. There's a new health clinic in Boswell, a 100,000 square-foot medical campus under construction in Durant and health, education, economic development, workforce training and other programs. "Here in Oklahoma, we designated the Choctaw Nation as one of America’s first Promise Zones -– areas where the federal government is partnering with local communities and businesses to jumpstart economic development and job creation, expand educational opportunities, and increase affordable housing, and improve public safety," President Barack Obama said when he visited the tribe in July. "And as a result, you’ve already received federal investments in Early Head Start, to make sure our young people are getting the best possible beginning in life; child care, job training, support for young entrepreneurs." The tribe is the third largest in the United States. Get the Story:
Federal initiative is part of what brings hope to southeast Oklahoma (The Oklahoma 9/8)
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