2017-08: Urge Congress to Act on Recommendations from American Academy of Arts and Sciences to Support Native American Languages

WHEREAS, the National Indian Education Association (NIEA) was established in 1970 for the purpose of advocating, planning, and promoting the unique and special educational needs of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians; and

WHEREAS, NIEA as the largest national Indian organization of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian educators, administrators, parents, and students in the United States, provides a forum to discuss and act upon issues affecting the education of Indian and Native people; and

WHEREAS, through its unique relationship with Indian nations and tribes, the federal government has a fiduciary responsibility to meet the educational needs of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians, residing on and off their reserved or non-reserved homelands; and

WHEREAS, the Commission on Language Learning created in 2015 by the Academy of Arts and Sciences was to gather data, collect testimony, and discuss opportunities for improving the nation’s capacity in non-English languages; and

WHEREAS, the Commission’s Report published in 2017 recommends targeted support and programming for Native American languages as defined in the Native American Language Act (NALA);

WHEREAS, NIEA membership has a history of supporting Native American languages, which is demonstrated through the following resolutions: 2009-10: Expansion of Federal Programs to Address Native American, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Indigenous Language and Culture Related Needs and Rights, 2013-09: Support for Native Language Instruction and Revitalization, and 2014-07: Urge Federal Implementation of NALA 1990 in Support of Native American Language Medium Education;

WHEREAS, NIEA specifically supports the following four recommendations proposed in the Commission’s Report, which align with the mission of NIEA:

  1. Increase the number of Native language teachers at all levels of education so that every child in every state has the opportunity to learn a language in addition to English.

  2. Supplement Native language instruction across the education system through public-private partnerships among schools, government, philanthropies, businesses, and local community members.

  3. Support Native heritage languages already spoken in the United States, and help these languages persist from one generation to the next.

  4. Provide targeted support and programming for Native American languages as defined in the Native American Languages Act.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Indian Education Association will continue to advocate with Congress and the Department of Education on the priorities of Native American languages, including building upon these recommendations and full implementation of NALA in order to increase support for Native American languages being used as primary languages of education; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NIEA reiterates its recommendation to expand funds and services to support Native American language services to support the core program of student instruction and to address the critical needs of Native language revitalization.

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this resolution shall be the policy of NIEA until it is withdrawn or modified by subsequent resolution.

Adrianne Elliott