Indigenous Language Fluency Field School Brochure
This field school is a collaboration between NIC’s Indigenous Language Fluency Certificate and Kapi’olani Community College in Honolulu. Students from the Kwak̓wala cohort have been invited to attend the field school and spend 10 days in Honolulu. During that time our Kwakwaka’wakw students will share language learning experiences and engage in a cultural exchange with our Hawaiian hosts.
A central theme of our work is revitalizing the deeply rooted connections with Hawaiian families that were established generations ago. As our people say, “O’ma̱n’s “Nam’a”. We are One. Reciprocity is an integral aspect of applying an Indigenous approach to the ILF field school. Our Knowledge Holders, traditional dancers, singers, NIC students and instructors traveling to Honolulu will be a part of the cultural exchange.
This amazing opportunity has been made possible with the support of the NIC’s Study Abroad program that provides diverse opportunities for experiential and place-based learning and aligns with NIC's Build 2026 Strategic Plan, Working Together Indigenization Plan, and Internationalization Plan. The themes areas for our Study Abroad will focus on Indigenization, decolonization, internationalization, and environmental sustainability. A central focus of our dialogue will have our students and faculty explore the amazing progress the Hawaiian community has made to revitalize Hawaiian. In addition, we will explore the concept of what it means to be truly “Indigenous Serving” and improve NIC’s alliances with the Indigenous communities we serve. Each of our ILFC Students are eligible to apply for financial support for this field school and credits for their participation will be applied to their Certificate.
Courses: Indigenous Language Fluency Certificate, designed as a direct response to the TRC Calls to Action. The program is designed to support infusion of local Indigenous pedagogy and approaches to learning.
Duration of the field school: 10 days
Field School Leader: Sara Child, NIC instructor, passionate about Truth and Reconciliation and the role that Indigenous language revitalization must play in achieving the Calls to Action. Sara has developed numerous Indigenous language courses as well as NIC's newly implemented Indigenous Language Fluency Certificate. Sara visited Kapi’olani College in 2019, where they collectively decided to move forward with the exploration of what it means to be “Indigenous Serving” to support Kapi’olani College and North Island College to progress toward supporting the needs of the Indigenous students and communities they serve.
