A Lingít culture and language program for Juneau students is expanding to middle school

In an effort to increase language fluency and preserve the Indigenous culture, public schools in Oklahoma are offering Indigenous language programs to teach a variety of languages, like Cherokee and Choctaw, to interested students. In the 2022-2023 school year, 3,314 students from elementary through high school participated in an Indigenous language program.

A school district in New Mexico is finding success with a dual language education program. A regular school day for an elementary school student in a Gadsen school district school might entail reviewing their math or history in Spanish or English, depending on the assigned language that week. “Our bilingual programs are not just for English learners, they’re for all of our students," Mayra Valtierrez, the director of language and culture at the New Mexico Public Education Department, said. "That’s something that’s unique to our state."

The Mvskoke 4-H Ocmulgee Club, in collaboration with Oklahoma State University and MCN Food Distribution, teaches Muscogee (Creek) Nation students hands-on pecan tree planting and food sovereignty skills rooted in Mvskoke cultural tradition.

The Indigenous Science Initiative has created a culturally-responsive, open-source science curriculum—piloted at eight schools over three years—that integrates traditional Indigenous practices with state standards to increase Native student engagement.

The first eight graduates of a new program run by the University of British Columbia Okanagan, the En’owkin Centre, and the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology received their bachelor's of nsyilxcən language fluency degrees. The program is one of the ways the syilx Nation is revitalizing their language, which is critically endangered. Students spend their first two years learning from fluent speakers in the community and the second two years working on a capstone project that includes an internship.

The Myanmar Curriculum pilot project allows Rohingya children living in Bangladeshi refugee camps to be educated with the curriculum and language of their native country. The aim to make an eventual return to their home country easier. So far, 200,000 children have been enrolled, mostly in grades 1 through 4. UNICEF plans to scale the program to cover all 410,000 school-age children in the camps.

Fiddler Dennis Stroughmatt plays French Creole music, sings, and speaks in Missouri French to raise awareness about the language and culture no longer widely practiced in the region.

Cut Bank, Montana has incorporated education about Native Americans in all grade levels with a special emphasis on and participation by Blackfeet Nation students because of the reservation's proximity. This effort is also state legislature: the Indian Education For All (IEFA) law was passed in 1999 and funds schools conducting the curriculum. Cut Bank School is special because of how Blackfeet Nation students contribute to the teaching, but students are also learning by reading stories about American Indians, learning words and phrases, talking about the first Thanksgiving, and playing traditional music.

Somerville, MA is one of a growing number of cities that has implemented a two-way dual immersion program in its schools. These programs combine fluent English speakers and English language learners in the same room, helping to integrate not only schools but classrooms and empowering both groups of students in the process.

Qungasvik, a program developed by and for Yup’ik people living in Alaska, focuses on skills, craft making, and community connection. The program provides a strong support system and is helping to decrease incidence of alcoholism, suicide, and isolation among the Yup’ik.