Native American Languages Act Hearing
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S. HRG. 108–107 NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGES ACT HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON S. 575 TO AMEND THE NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGES ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE SUPPORT OF NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGE SURVIVAL SCHOOLS MAY 15, 2003 WASHINGTON, DC ( U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 87–260 PDF WASHINGTON : 2003 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402–0001 COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS BEN NIGHTHORSE CAMPBELL, Colorado, Chairman DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii, Vice Chairman JOHN McCAIN, Arizona, KENT CONRAD, North Dakota PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico HARRY REID, Nevada CRAIG THOMAS, Wyoming DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota JAMES M. INHOFE, Oklahoma TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota GORDON SMITH, Oregon MARIA CANTWELL, Washington LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska PAUL MOOREHEAD, Majority Staff Director/Chief Counsel PATRICIA M. ZELL, Minority Staff Director/Chief Counsel (II) C O N T E N T S Page S. 575, text of ........................................................................................................... 2 Statements: Brown, William Y., director, Bishop Museum, Honolulu, HI ....................... 55 Cheek, John, director, National Indian Education Association, Alexan- dria, VA .......................................................................................................... 58 Chock, Jennifer, director, Program Planning and Development .................. 55 Coosewon, Rita, Comanche language instructor, Comanche Nation Col- lege, Lawton, OK .......................................................................................... 38 Dinwoodie, David, Department of Anthropology, University of New Mex- ico, Albuquerque, NM ................................................................................... 57 Demmert, Jr., William, Professor of Education, Woodring College of Edu- cation, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA ....................... 30 DesRosier, Joycelyn, Piegan Institute/Nizipuhwahsin School, Browning, MT .................................................................................................................. 37 Hermes, Mary, assistant professor of education, University of Minnesota, Duluth, MN ................................................................................................... 49 Herrera, Carla, Pueblo DeCochiti ................................................................... 26 Hinton, Leanne, president, Society for the Study of the Indigenous Lan- guages of the Americas, Berkely, CA .......................................................... 24 Ho’opai, Holo, student, Ke Kula ‘o Nawahiokalani’opu’u, Hawaii, Univer- sity of Hawaii at Hilo, Hilo, HI ................................................................... 44 Inouye, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator from Hawaii, vice chairman, Com- mittee on Indian Affairs ............................................................................... 1 Kaplan, Lawrence D., director, Alaska Native Language Center, Univer- sity of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK ................................................... 47 Kawaiaea, Keiki, director, Kahuawaiola Indigenous Teacher Education Program, and director, Hale Kuamoo Hawaiian Language Center, Ka Haka Ula o Keelikolani (Hawaiian College) ............................................... 42 LaPier, Rosalyn, Piegan Institute/Nizipuhwahsin School, Browning, MT .. 35 LaRonge, Lisa, Ojibwe Language Immersion School, Hayward, WI ............ 49 Leno, Vina, Acoma Pueblo ............................................................................... 26 Navarro, Geneva, Comanche language instructor, Comanche Nation Col- lege, Lawton, OK .......................................................................................... 38 Pecos, Travis, Pueblo DeCochiti ...................................................................... 26 Rawlins, Namaka, director, ’Aha Punana Leo, Inc., Hilo, HI ....................... 46 Romero, Mary Eunice, College of Education, University of Arizona, Tuc- son, AZ ........................................................................................................... 28 Silva, Kalena, director, Ka Haka ‘Ula o Ke’ Elikolani College, University of Hawaii at Hilo, Hilo, HI ........................................................................... 42 Sims, Christine, chairwoman, Linguistic Institute for Native Americans and member of Pueblo of Acoma, NM ......................................................... 26 Wilson, William, Ka Haka ‘Ula o Ke’ Elikolani College, University of Hawaii at Hilo, Hilo, HI ............................................................................... 44 Worl, Rosita, Sealaska Heritage Institute, University of Alaska South- east, Juneau, AK ........................................................................................... 33 APPENDIX Prepared statements: Brown, William Y. ............................................................................................ 65 Cheek, John ...................................................................................................... 69 Coosewon, Rita (with letter) ............................................................................ 75 Demmert, Jr., William (with attachment) ...................................................... 78 DesRosier, Joycelyn .......................................................................................... 63 (III) IV Page Prepared statements—Continued Dinwoodie, David .............................................................................................. 84 Hermes, Mary ................................................................................................... 91 Hinton, Leanne ................................................................................................. 94 Ho’opai, Holo ..................................................................................................... 99 Inouye, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator from Hawaii, vice chairman, Com- mittee on Indian Affairs ............................................................................... 61 Kaplan, Lawrence D. ........................................................................................ 101 Kawaiaea, Keiki ................................................................................................ 104 Krauss, Michael E., founding director, Alaska ative Language Center ....... 101 La Marr, Cindy, president-elect, National Indian Education Association ... 109 LaPier, Rosalyn ................................................................................................ 113 McCarty, Ph.D., Teresa L. (with Attachments) ............................................. 116 Murkowski, Hon. Lisa, U.S. Senator from Alaska ......................................... 62 Navarro, Geneva (with attachment) ............................................................... 126 Rawlins, Namaka ............................................................................................. 129 Romero, Mary Eunice ....................................................................................... 135 Sims, Christine ................................................................................................. 140 Wilson, William ................................................................................................ 145 Additional material submitted for the record: Albers, Patricia C., professor and chairperson, Department of American Indian Studies, University of Minnesota (letter) ....................................... 151 Blackfeet Nation (resolution) ........................................................................... 153 From Ocean Icons To Prime Suspects, Blaine Harden, Washington Post article ............................................................................................................. 155 Sealaska Heritage Institute (proposed amendments) .................................... 157 NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGES ACT THURSDAY, MAY 15, 2003 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:42 a.m. in room 485, Russell Senate Building, Hon. Daniel K. Inouye (vice chair- man of the committee) presiding. Present: Senators Inouye, Campbell, and Murkowski. STATEMENT OF HON. DANIEL K. INOUYE, U.S. SENATOR FROM HAWAII, VICE CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS Senator INOUYE. I am sorry for all this inconvenience. I hope you will forgive us. We have 34 amendments remaining on the tax bill, and it is considered a very important measure, so it will be stop and go for a while. But I can assure you that I will be here all day and all night, if necessary. I have an opening statement, but I think all of you will agree with me that language is important; it is a link to the past, and I think it is an anchor for the future. We, in Hawaii, like the native people of Indian country, had to go through an experience where, forcibly, native languages were taken away. But today I am happy to report to you that in the State of Hawaii, the Hawaiian language is one of the State’s official languages is taught in public schools, and we have found by studies and experience that those who are in the language immersion program generally have better academic performance; we have more students seeking higher education going through