Advancing Sovereignty in Indigenous Education
Our Partnership with the NACA Inspired Schools Network
With its roots in the assimilationist policies of the nineteenth century, western educational models have continued to fail Indigenous students. By ignoring or actively erasing Indigenous history and culture, Native students have few spaces to express their Indigenous identity–leading to poor educational outcomes and low graduation rates.
That’s why many Indigenous communities are taking back their right to provide culturally-responsive education that celebrates students’ Indigenous identity.
Over the last year, Emergence has been honored to work alongside the NACA Inspired Schools Network (NISN) to support Indigenous leaders in launching new community-driven schools in three unique Indigenous communities. Since its founding–based on the groundbreaking success of the Native American Community Academy (NACA) in Albuquerque, New Mexico–NISN has supported educational leaders from across the country and helped spark the creation of numerous Indigenous-led schools in diverse communities. But funding these schools raises a range of complex challenges.
Without an existing model to fund independent Indigenous-led schools, and with states like South Dakota and North Dakota failing to pass charter school legislation, there’s a critical need to raise resources from independent foundations and federal agencies to support their work. The estimate to fund one Indigenous student at a community-led, culturally-responsive school is close to $25,000 annually–far higher than other educational institutions–because educators often must create innovative, culturally-grounded curriculum from scratch, cover the costs of physical space and transportation in rural areas, and more.
That’s where Emergence has stepped in. Our team has been working side-by-side with three incredible schools (featured below!) as they launched their first classes this fall, helping their administrators build the infrastructure, capacity, and resources for long-term stability.
“For us, what’s been great about the partnership with Emergence is their deep experience working with and in Indigenous communities and supporting Indigenous-led nonprofit organizations,” said Matt Kull, Director of Operations at NACA Inspired Schools Network. “The leaders who are launching these schools are educators focused on the hard work of developing curriculum and supporting students. Having Emergence behind them to develop the foundational resources they need allows them to stay focused on developing the indigeneity of their schools programming and educational model–creating educational environments where Native students no longer have to check their indigeneity at the door. That’s helping us to prove that, when you create those environments, kids want to be there to learn–and they thrive in a whole new way.”
Learn more about these Indigenous-led schools here—and stay tuned for more from their extraordinary leaders (coming soon)!
Endazhi-Nitaawiging Charter School is the Red Lake Nation’s first charter school grounded in the Ojibwe culture and language. It provides youth with an Ojibwe immersion education grounded in Ojibwe values that is academically rigorous and celebrates Indigenous culture. This fall Endazhi-Nitaawiging Charter School began enrolling students in grades K-5 then will add a grade each year until 2025-26, expanding to students in grades K-8
Based in Rapid City, South Dakota, the Oceti Sakowin Community Academy is grounded in the thought and philosophy of the people who first walked this land–the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota people of the Seven Council Fires or great Sioux nation. The Academy offers students an inclusive and diverse education that is driven by rigorous academics grounded in the language, culture, thought and philosophy of the Oceti Sakowin. The curriculum supports students in developing a deep sense of belonging and increasing their levels of engagement and motivation–leading to improved academic outcomes, holistic wellness, strong cultural identities, and confidence. This fall the Academy began enrolling kindergarten students and will add a new grade level each year moving forward.
Mní Wičhóni Nakíčižiŋ Wóuŋspe (Defenders of the Water School)
During the Oceti Sakowin Camp resistance on the Standing Rock Reservation, families and community members came together to create their own educational model grounded in Lakota lifeways and the movement for self-determination. The school ran at the camp for nearly five months, serving up to 45 kids at a time and developing and returning to a model of community-based education. When the camp closed, organizers knew that their vision of education needed to continue–and Mní Wičhóni Nakíčižiŋ Wóuŋspe (Defenders of the Water School) was born. Officially relaunched the fall of 2022, Mní Wičhóni Nakíčižiŋ Wóuŋspe is becoming a model for Indigenous, land-based education that is transforming opportunities for young people.