We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
Contact: ACF Office of Communications
September 9, 2016
(202) 401-9215, media@acf.hhs.gov
Over $1.8 million have been awarded to four tribes and one college to support site-based educational programs to demonstrate evidence based strategies that integrate Native language and educational services within a specific community.
Awarded by the Administration for Native Americans, at HHS’ Administration for Children and Families, the language community coordination grants will support the tribes to integrate stand-alone language programs into a broader educational system that can offer a continuum of Native language instruction from pre-school through post-secondary education. The cooperative agreement awards are expected to be renewed annually for a five-year project period. These grants are eligible to receive $9.4 million over the life of these grants.
Aaniiih Nakoda College of Harlem, Mont. is awarded $320,000 to implement a kindergarten through post-secondary school language track in the reservation school systems. The grant will also provide the opportunity to upgrade learning materials and increase the number of highly qualified instructors by hiring graduating language students.
“I’ve visited several of our Native communities and found many have components of Native language programs for students, but they often lack the time and resources to fully implement programs,” said Lillian Sparks Robinson, commissioner for the Administration for Native Americans. “This funding will help Aaniiih Nakoda College of Harlem with developing comprehensive Native language courses that will be continued through the student’s life and ensure language preservation for native speakers.”
The Native Language Community Coordination program (NLCC) is a five-year demonstration project for tribes to create comprehensive education systems focused on high-quality Native language instruction, career readiness and academic success. Tribes will also have the opportunity to develop Native language certification for teachers under the NLCC program.
The goal of the program is to provide a seamless path for Native language achievements across generations for educational and economic success. The NLCC is a new funding program provided by the Administration for Native Americans to help Native communities achieve social and economic self-sufficiency.
