[ an example of a Iroquois Nation longhouse ]

Life As A Traditional Native American Youth

It is always a wonderful feeling to see our youth embrace their traditional ways and beliefs.  Tina Karahkwino Square is one such as this.  She is a Mohawk from the Akwesasne and attends the Salmon River Central School in upstate New York.  The Salmon River Central School District^[01] is a small rural school district located in the northernmost reaches of New York State. Nestled in the foothills of the Adirondacks, on the shore of the Saint Lawrence, the district serves students from the towns of Fort Covington, Bombay, Brasher, Bangor and Westville as well as from the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation.  This year, the Salmon River Elementary School was nominated for the “2009 No School Left Behind – Blue Ribbon Award”^[02]  and received this prestigious award from the U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan in Washington, D.C. on November 3rd of this year.

This video is one that she has produced herself, and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.

What are your thoughts on seeing our youth embrace our traditional ways…

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1. Salmon River Central School District  http://www.srk12.org/ [↩]
2. The No Child Left Behind – Blue Ribbon Schools award distinguishes and honors schools for helping students achieve at very high levels and for making significant progress in closing the achievement gap. Salmon River Elementary was nominated based on one of two assessment criteria:

   1)students at the school, achieve in the top 10 percent on state tests regardless of students’ background; or
   2) the school has shown dramatic improvement in student performance to high levels on state tests with at least 40 percent of students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

   “I think it’s quite an honor,” Mr. Kevin Walbridge, Elementary Principal, stated. Salmon River Elementary, he noted is one of only 19 schools nominated by the state to receive the award. [↩]