Fort Lewis College Native Language Revitalization Institute

FAIN: AA-284541-22

Fort Lewis College (Durango, CO 81301-3908)
Deanne L. Grant (Project Director: May 2021 to January 2023)
Janine Marie Fitzgerald (Project Director: January 2023 to present)
Janine Marie Fitzgerald (Co Project Director: December 2021 to January 2023)

Design and implementation of a Fort Lewis College summer Native American language institute. 

This project promotes Native American cultural and linguistic revitalization efforts through a theme-based language learning approach that centers Native American beliefs on animacy. This approach centers Native American ways of being to promote not only revitalization of Native languages but also related cultural revitalization, as Native languages describe a world in action and worldview. This approach encourages Native self-identity and furthers awareness of oneself in relation to the world from a Native perspective. We encourage and stimulate Native language learning that excites eager learners to take on the monumental task of learning a language facing extinction and fraught with challenges related to the effects of colonialism. To change the course of language loss, we encourage learners of all abilities, confront shame, and guilt in the process, and incite the needed fanaticism for one to learn their Native language at Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO.