PAUMA
VALLEYFocused on revitalizing its indigenous language, the Pauma
Band of Luiseño Indians awarded $40,000 to the California State
University San Marcos (CSUSM) California Indian Culture and Sovereignty
Center (CICSC).
The gift is meant to create technology-based
language learning devices that will preserve and teach the Luiseño
language to tribal members.
"We are passionate about this project
and its potential for finding a practical way to help preserve the
Luiseño language for future generationsnot just for
our tribe but for all Luiseño tribes," said Patricia
Dixon, Education Committee Chair of the Pauma Band of Luiseño
Indians.
The collective $50,000 grant is shared
between CSUSM and Palomar Colleges American Indian Studies
Department. The CICSC at CSUSM will serve as the lead organization
for the Luiseño Language Preservation Project.
"The California Indian Culture and
Sovereignty Center is both honored to spearhead this project and
excited about the role this plays in our mission to help support
the sovereignty and cultural heritage of local tribes as well as
foster more collaborative research and learning opportunities for
CSUSM students," said Advertisement
"This generous donation by the Pauma
Band of Luiseño Indians also enables the University to help
ensure that the Luiseño language will not be lost, and further
supports our dedication to fostering community partnerships, one
of the Universitys main areas of focus," said Neal Hoss,
Vice President for University Advancement at CSUSM.
CICSC collaborators will study and document
the language, and produce tangible language-learning tools that
can be disseminated through modern technology.
Working in partnership with the CICSC,
Palomar College collaborators will host instructional workshops
for Pauma tribal members on the use of the language technology and
devices, as well as explore and develop additional mediums for project
dissemination.
For more than 20 years, CSUSM has sustained
collaborative relationships with the many local American Indian
tribes in its service area.
After President Karen Haynes established
a Native American Advisory Council in 2007, the University established
CICSC, a formal center dedicated to developing and conducting research
projects that support the maintenance of sovereignty and culture
within tribal communities.
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