WIČHÓUŊ YUWÁŊKAL UŊGLÚZAPI / CELEBRATING OUR CULTURE
Immersed in Lakȟóta
Uŋčí Philomine, one of Red Cloud’s most beloved teachers, often said that Lakȟóta culture can’t exist without the language. With only 6,000 first-language Lakȟóta speakers still living, there has never been a more important moment to empower a new generation of fluent Lakȟóta speakers. Today Red Cloud is rising to that call.
After launching the nation’s first comprehensive K-12 Lakȟóta language curriculum over a decade ago, Red Cloud has taken another groundbreaking step in its language revitalization work: transforming into a dual-language immersion school. Students in kindergarten, first, and second grades are already using the Lakȟóta language as the primary medium for learning in the classroom. Over time, all Red Cloud students across all grade levels will study a range of academic subjects — math, science, language arts, social studies, and more — in a dual-language environment.
“We’ve seen educational outcomes improve across every grade,” Red Cloud’s Superintendent Moira Coomes said. “But more than that, we’ve seen our students’ confidence and self-esteem grow exponentially as they reconnect with their heritage and culture. They are deeply committed to sustaining the Lakȟóta language for generations to come after them.”
Despite the scarcity of learning resources in Lakȟóta, Red Cloud’s language team — which includes several Red Cloud alumni — are developing an innovative, culturally grounded curriculum from scratch. It fully integrates Lakȟóta values and an indigenous worldview, bringing first-language speakers into the classroom to offer inspiration and guidance.
For Elyssa Sierra Concha ’13, seeing her first-graders learning entirely in Lakȟóta is a reminder of what was nearly lost.
“My grandfather was taken from his family, from his mother, when he was really, really young. There [at a boarding school] he lost his culture and his language, and that affected our family heavily,” she shared. “But he was able to see, before he passed, the language being revitalized...to see his grandchildren going into school and learning Lakȟóta, and being in a Lakȟóta classroom, rather than what he experienced as a child.”
“This program will help us raise an entirely new generation of fluent Lakȟóta speakers — who will be strong leaders and who will ultimately help heal our community. It’s a beautiful movement to be a part of.”