Forest Service Book (language)

US Forest Service Publishes Dual Language Booklet for Native Alaskans for First Time

Posted by Renee Lee, U.S. Forest Service Office of Communication

Partnering with a local Alaskan native community, the U.S. Forest
Service has for the first time published a dual language booklet in
English and a native Alaskan language, Yup’ik, to help educate the
greater community in Southwestern Alaska on invasive species.

Titled “Protecting Southwestern Alaska from Invasive Species – A Guide
in the English and Yup’ik languages,” the Forest Service’s Alaska
Region and the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies aim to explain
invasive species concerns unique to Southwestern Alaska, which is home
to a large community of the indigenous Yup’ik people. The title of the
booklet translated into Yup’ik is, “Kellutellra Alaskam Ungalaqlirnera
Eniaritulinun Itrallerkaaneng – Maaryartekaq Kassat Yup’iit-llu
Qaneryaraigtun.”

Access full article below:
http://blogs.usda.gov/2012/02/13/us-forest-service-publishes-dual-language-booklet-for-native-alaskans-for-first-time/

Native App (language)

NAPT Launches Mobile App--
Available for Download from iTunes(R)

The Native Language App is a great way for children and adults to learn different Native words from across Indian Country. This app can be a fun and interactive approach for someone to learn about the Indigenous cultures of where they live or as an introduction to a language they may be interested in becoming fluent in later on.  Download today from the iTunes app store for FREE (Available for iPhone and iPad devices).

 Includes Dine (Navajo), Lakota, Mvskoke, and Ponca.  More languages to come.

Sure You Can Ask me A Question

“Sure You Can Ask Me A Personal Question?” 

Diane Burns (Lac Courte Oreilles- Cheemehuevi)

 

How do you do?

No, I am not Chinese.

No, not Spanish.

No, I am American Indi—uh, Native American.

 

No, not from India.

No, not Apache

No, not Navajo.

No, not Sioux.

No, we are not extinct.

Yes, Indian.

 

Oh?

So that’s where you got those high cheekbones.

Your great grandmother, huh?

An Indian Princess, huh?

Hair down to there?

Let me guess. Cherokee?

 

Oh, so you’ve had an Indian friend?

That close?

 

Oh, so you’ve had an Indian lover?

That tight?

 

Oh, so you’ve had an Indian servant?

That much?

 

Yeah, it was awful what you guys did to us.

It’s real decent of you to apologize.

No, I don’t know where you can get peyote.

No, I don’t know where you can get Navajo rugs real cheap.

No, I didn’t make this. I bought it at Bloomingdales.

 

Thank you. I like your hair too.

I don’t know if anyone knows whether or not Cher is really Indian.

No, I didn’t make it rain tonight.

 

Yeah. Uh-huh. Spirituality.

Uh-huh. Yeah. Spirituality. Uh-huh. Mother

Earth. Yeah. Uh’huh. Uh-huh. Spirituality.

 

No, I didn’t major in archery.

Yeah, a lot of us drink too much.

Some of us can’t drink enough.

 

This ain’t no stoic look.

This is my face.

 

 


 

 

Diane Burns.

Health Literacy Teen Challenge Video Contest (opportunity)

The ¡VIVA! Peer Tutors of the South Texas Independent School District are conducting a nationwide health literacy challenge. Students enrolled in U.S. schools in grades 6-12 can submit a video promoting the web site MedlinePlus.gov. Video submission will open February 1, 2012 and will close March 23, 2012. Winners will be announced on the ¡VIVA! web site and Facebook page on April 16, 2012, and winning videos will be posted on the ¡VIVA! web site. For complete details about the video contest please visit the ¡VIVA! web site at:

http://bla.stisd.net/viva.html

NCAI Education Newsletter(edu/information)


NCAI Education Newsletter
January 23, 2012
Edition 4

Table of Contents

First in Series of Four Tribal Leader Education Roundtables Held Last Friday in Rapid City, SD

Over 150 tribal leaders, educators, and community members met in Rapid City, South Dakota, last Friday, January 20, to attend the first in a series of four tribal leader education roundtables hosted by the Departments of the Interior and Education. While comments covered a number of issues, the most frequently topics addressed fell into three broad areas: 

1.       Increasing support for language programs;
2.       Inadequate funding of all Bureau of Indian Education programs; and
3.       More direct involvement of tribes in the decision making process.

Please find more detailed notes on what was discussed at the roundtable attached to this email.

Also please find attached testimony submitted by the Great Plains Tribal Chairman's Association.

Click here to read the Rapid City Journal’s news coverage of the event.

Next Three Tribal Leader Education Roundtables to be Held in Norman, OK; Albuquerque, NM; and Seattle, WA Call for Notes and Comments

If you will be attending any of the upcoming Tribal Leader Roundtables, NCAI would greatly appreciate if you would share your notes and comments with us so we can distribute the information to tribal leaders and other stakeholders. Please email your notes to Katie Jones at kjones@ncai.org.
Other Information

At the Rapid City Tribal Leader Roundtable, there were many questions and comments about the Bureau of Indian Education’s administrative expenses. If you would like to raise this issue on behalf of your tribe and would like more information, please click here for the Department of the Interior's Budget Justifications and Performance Information for FY 2011.

Dates and Locations of the Upcoming Roundtables

  • January 23, 2012: Norman, OK - Embassy Suites
  • January 25, 2012: Albuquerque, NM - Sheraton Uptown
  • February 16, 2012: Seattle, WA – TBD
These one day events are open to the public and scheduled opportunities for in-person and teleconference public testimony will be made available. Participants will also be able to submit their testimony via mail or email. The roundtables will also be webcasted.
 
There is no registration fee for the event. To receive teleconference and webcast information, you may register immediately online at  MailScanner has detected a possible fraud attempt from "r20.rs6.net" claiming to be http://triballeader-roundtables.indianeducation.org/. You will also find on the website the Executive Order 13592, lodging and travel information, and additional reports.
 
Click here to download the "Save the Date" announcement.
 
For additional information, contact Ahniwake Rose, Human Resources Policy Director, at arose@ncai.org or 202-466-7767.

Bureau of Indian Education Begins Search for Green Ribbon Schools

Bureau of Indian Education (BIE)-funded schools can now apply for the U.S. Department of Education’s Green Ribbon School program (ED-GRS), which provides national recognition for schools using outstanding environmental programs and techniques.

Interested schools can access the online application on the BIE Green Ribbon School website at: http://www.bie.edu/greenribbonschools/index.htm. Applications are due by February 24, 2012. The BIE will review and select up to four nominees to the ED-GRS. Awardees will be announced in April 2012 and are expected to receive their awards in May 2012.

The BIE joined the recently launched national Green Ribbon School program and launched a nationwide search across Indian Country to find outstanding environmental schools that meet its standards. Many BIE schools are actively saving energy, reducing costs, promoting environmental literacy and providing healthy environments for students, faculty and staff. Those schools will now have the opportunity to be recognized nationally.

States and other education agencies have also been invited to participate in the Green Ribbon Schools program, which is patterned after the long running Blue Ribbon School Program. The new federal program encourages schools to:

·         Implement energy conservation measures that pave the way for reduced environmental impact, cost savings, and job creation;
·         Undertake environmental and behavioral changes in schools that ensure the health, wellness, and productivity of students, teachers, and staff, and;
·         Promote environmental education that supports students’ strong civic skills, environmental stewardship, and workforce preparedness.

As part of this effort to promote a comprehensive approach to creating a healthier school environment in all BIE-funded schools, the Bureau committed to the Let’s Move! in Indian Country (LMIC) initiative in 2010 and encouraged all BIE-funded schools to sign up to become Team Nutrition Schools. The LMIC website (http://www.letsmove.gov/indiancountry) includes information about resources, grants and programs available to assist schools in becoming healthier places of learning.