Nkwusm receives awards

ARLEE — The Nkwusm Salish Language Revitalization Institute is pleased to announce they have recently received support totaling $119,500 for a number of programs and improvements that will enable them to carry out their work on the Flathead Indian Reservation.

The Nkwusm Salish Language Revitalization Institute, located in Arlee, MT, opened its immersion school to its first group of young children in the fall of 2002 with a preschool and kindergarten; it now enjoys students from Pre-K through age 12. The school is a complete academic experience dedicated to the promotion and preservation of the Salish Language. The curriculum is translated into the Salish Language and the children are then instructed in their native tongue, with the ultimate goal of creating conversationally fluent Salish speakers.

Recent awards include:

• $100,000 For additional classroom space and staff. This project was funded by a grant (private anonymous family donation) through the Toledo Community Foundation.
• $5,000 Lowe's Toolbox for Education Grant - through the Lowe's Charitable and Educational Foundation. This grant will be used for development of the Changing Seasons Curriculum.
• $3,500 Honor the Earth - for general support
• $6,000 Blackfoot Telecommunications Group - for development of a Salish Audio/Visual Resource Center.
• $5,000 Seva Foundation - for support of the Nkwusm Salish Language/Culture summer camp - Spirit of Renewal.

Nkwusm extends its deep appreciation for these donations. For more information on Nkwusm, please contact Tachini Pete, Executive Director at (406) 726-5050 or visit the Nkwusm website at www.salishworld.com.