![]() ![]() The Northern California Indian Development Council has also curated an extensive list of regional and national scholarships available to students of Native American descent. The Foundation awards funding to college sophomores and juniors working toward careers in policy, health, and environmental issues. Udall Foundation Undergraduate Scholarship The Fund provides scholarships to Native American and Alaska Native students attending tribal and non-tribal colleges.Īmerican Indian Education Fund (AIEF) ScholarshipsĪIEF awards scholarships to more than 200 students each year.Īmerican Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) ScholarshipsĪIGC grants a variety of undergraduate and graduate awards yearly, each with its own criteria. Multiple organizations have scholarships dedicated specifically to heritage learners and students of Native American descent.Īmerican Indian College Fund Scholarships Those who live in regions with large Native American populations (such as in the states of Alaska, Arizona, and New Mexico, among others) also benefit from stronger communication with the people in their neighborhoods-including local business owners and community leaders.Īdapted from Jon Reyhner’s “Rationale and Needs for Stabilizing Indigenous Languages” How Will You Lead with Native American Languages? Scholarships and Grantsīe sure to check with local community, religious, or tribal organizations-as well as your college language department-about resources to fund your studies. This new perspective and respect promotes tolerance and empathy, and allows speakers to act as cultural ambassadors when interacting with others. Students Learn Chippewa and Blackfoot Languages to Better Understand their Culture and Community (Video) Read & Watchįor those with roots outside of the Native American community, learning an indigenous language allows valuable insight into Native American culture and history. Many American Indians and Alaska Natives have sought to follow a bilingual “English Plus” philosophy that will preserve their heritages while also allowing their children access to jobs in the non-Indian world. In seeking to preserve their cultural heritage, tribes are not rejecting the importance of English language instruction for their children. Department of Education study affirms that native-language use in schools does not hold children back. With NALA, Congress found convincing evidence that student achievement and performance, community and school pride, and educational opportunity are clearly and directly tied to respect for, and support of, the first language of the child. Students who begin to learn another language as children are able to complete longer learning sequences and develop better pronunciation than peers who begin later in life. The cognitive benefits of early bilingualism and learning a heritage language in addition to English from a young age are well-documented. The Importance of Heritage Languages to Young Learners Many of the keys to the psychological, social, and physical survival of humankind may well be lost if we allow languages and cultures die. Languages contain generations of wisdom, going back into antiquity. speakers in fact, of the remaining languages, only Yupik, Dakota, Apache, Keres, Cherokee, and Choctaw have more than 10,000 speakers nationwide. No other indigenous language currently has more than 20,000 U.S. Of these 169 languages, Navajo is the most prevalent (with approximately 170,000 speakers). The Census Bureau’s 2006 – 2010 American Community Survey reports 169 active Native North American languages, spoken by a population of fewer than 400,000 American residents. Here are some reasons why it’s important to support and learn Native American languages: Time is of the Essence: It’s Now or Never! Today, Native American language immersion programs for K-12 learners continue to grow, and several universities offer Native American Languages and Linguistics programs. Since then, multiple federal task forces and conferences dedicated to the promotion and protection of Native American languages have been convened. Congress passed the Native American Languages Act (NALA) in 1990-declaring it the policy of the United States to preserve, protect, and promote the rights and freedom of Native Americans to use, practice, and develop Native American languages. Many Native American languages are endangered however, despite ongoing challenges and setbacks, the struggle of American Indian and Alaska Native communities for the legal right to maintain their languages and cultures has been won for the most part. ![]()
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