American Indian Symposium to highlight preservation

(Tahlequah, Okla.) Northeastern State Universitys Center for Tribal Studies will host its 43rd Annual Symposium on the American Indian, April 14-18 at the Tahlequah campus. The theme of this years event is Children: The Seeds of Change.

Included in the list of events ranging from a film series and musical concert to the NSU Powwow, the lectures and seminars will generally focus on topical issues, like teaching and preserving indigenous languages.

A lot of the topics discussed are issues that American Indians have had to work through in the past and even today, said Alisa Douglas, CTS interim director and student coordinator.

This ties in with the chosen theme, she said, as it turns the educational system on itself and questions what is also being taught at home.

A panel with Hawaiian-native Namaka Rawlins, Chumona Deere, Meda Nix, Kevin Roberts-Field and moderator Wyman Kirk, will discuss and field questions on Teaching Indigenous Languages on Wednesday, April 15.

Deere, has spent many years creating ways for tribal citizens to have access to learning indigenous words and phrases.

She has been Mvskoke-fluent in reading and writing since childhood.

Roberts-Fields, Nokos-mekkoce Yvholv, of the Mvskoke (Creek & Seminole), Choctaw, and Chickasaw Nations of Oklahoma, is an advocate for indigenous language and culture revitalization, and a proponent for the establishment of language immersion environments.

This focus continuesThursdayandFriday, as Muscogee (Creek) Scholars host a Native Language Forum, followed by an Indigenous Languages Documentation and Revitalization Seminar which also continues into Fridayas an all-day session.

Colleen Fitzgerald, professor of linguistics and director of the Native American Languages Lab at the University of Texas will be part of the latter panel on both days.

She earned her doctorate in linguistics at the University of Arizona, where she first started work with the Tohono O'odham language community. For more than 20 years, Fitzgerald has worked with Native American tribes to document and revitalize their languages.

According to Douglas, one of the main challenges American Indians are facing is the revitalization of their languages.

Dr. Bradley Montgomery-Anderson, an English associate professor at NSU, is also lending his expertise at the seminar.

Panelists presenting at the language seminars will share their present efforts with respect to what they are doing to teach indigenous languages to younger generations, via different means.

According to Douglas, the way she was taught as a child is different from her daughter, so it is important to host seminars like these to allow for sharing of teaching methods, and actual content.

Throughout the years, the passing of traditions have changed. What are we teaching our children now? How can they be better educated?

All sessions will take place in the Morgan Room, located on the 3rd Floor of the University Center in Tahlequah.

Registration is not required for these free workshops, but it is encouraged. To do so, send email to: Native.Languages.Lab@gmail.com.

For more information, contact the Center for Tribal Studies at 918-444-4350 ortribalstudies@nsuok.edu.