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Press Release
May 9, 2003
SEALASKA HERITAGE TO OFFER NATIVE LANGUAGE CLASS IN KETCHIKAN
Sealaska Heritage Institute will sponsor workshops in Ketchikan this month in an effort to save the Tsimshian and Haida Native languages.
The workshops are an expansion of an effort the institute launched last year in Ketchikan to revitalize Tsimshian (called Shim- al -gyack) and Haida, said Roy Iutzi-Mitchell, a sociolinguist for the institute.
Shim- al -gyack and Haida are the most endangered Native languages in Southeast Alaska, said Iutzi-Mitchell, noting the workshops are part of a long-term strategy to pass the languages to future generations. The program is tailored to novice and intermediate speakers, who may one day be able to teach the languages to others.
“In the long term, we’re planning to increase the number of Native language teachers who have training in up-to-the-minute, highly effective teaching methods so they can turn around and teach more people to speak Haida, Shim- al -gyack and Tlingit in Southeast Alaska,” said Iutzi-Mitchell.
The workshops are part of a program called Sealaska Kusteeyi, which the institute also offers in Juneau for Tlingit language students. The workshops are scheduled May 19-30 at UAS, Paul Building, Rooms 301 & 305. People who want to attend should contact the institute in Juneau at 463-4844. Sealaska Heritage Institute is a nonprofit founded by Sealaska Corp. to perpetuate and enhance Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian cultures.
CONTACT: Roy Iutzi-Mitchell, SHI Sociolinguist, 907-586-9272
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