Tanana Chiefs holds first culture camp for K-6 students

Kindergarten through sixth-grade students spent two days learning Athabascan languages, potlatch dancing and traditional skills at Tanana Chiefs Conference's first Family Service and Support Culture Camp. The camp ran July 22 and 23 at Effie Kokrine Charter School in Fairbanks. Organizers said they intend to hold it every year.

Students in grades K-3 attended in the mornings. Students in grades 4-6 attended in the afternoons.

The Doyon Foundation's Language Revitalization Team taught Athabascan languages on the first day. Brittney Woods-Orrison and TCC GO student volunteer Andria Moses led arts and crafts and Native Games demonstrations. TCC named Doyon Foundation partners Lucy Miller, Elizabeth "Noonoo" Green, Tatiana Andrew and Katrina Erick for sharing their knowledge and supporting the youth. On the second day, TCC Tribal Resource Stewardship Director Diloola Erickson led a language-based "Go Fish" game in which students learned animal names in different Athabascan dialects. Other activities included beading, drum painting, making greeting cards for Elders, career exploration and building wilderness survival kits. The Dene Enslaanh dance group, whose members Oliver Evans and Eliza Winfrey were identified in the release, taught potlatch dancing and singing.

An earlier Alaska News article on the Emerging Leaders Youth Summit noted that youth from across the TCC region gathered near Fairbanks for a four-day program that included moose hide tanning, fish net making, beadwork and traditional dancing. Participants named language revitalization among six advocacy priorities.

The Education and Indigenous Learning team wrote in TCC's Sept. 2 release that it hopes the camp "strengthens relationships with our young people, celebrates Alaska Native culture, and encourages students to utilize the TCC GO program when they reach high school."

TCC GO sits in the same Family Services Division. It offers dual credit courses, career guidance and stipends to seniors who complete the FAFSA, apply for scholarships or submit college applications. Fairbanks-based students must be enrolled in a federally recognized tribe within the TCC region. Students in off-road system villages in the region qualify regardless of Native status.

The account of the camp comes entirely from TCC's release, which quotes no participant families or outside partners.