Little Owl out at Spirit Lake social services

FORT TOTTEN, N.D. (AP) — A man hired in mid-August by the Spirit Lake Tribe to restore its embattled social services department says he will not continue as director after the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs takes over on Oct. 1.

Mark Little Owl tells the Grand Forks Herald that he expects to stay on in another role, perhaps as a liaison between the BIA and the tribe. The 34-year-old Little Owl had signed a four-year contract with the tribe,

The takeover is being made because of criticism that the tribe failed to protect vulnerable children. The tribe has been running social service programs under contract with the BIA, but the federal government will now administer the programs.

Little Owl says federal authorities told him there wasn't enough time to turn things around.

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