Waadookodaading

Waadookodaading Ojibwe Language Institute
Address
8575 W Trepania Rd, Hayward, WI 54843 Hayward, Wisconsin United States
Coordinates	45.944°N 91.357°W / 45.944; -91.357
Information
Type	Charter elementary/middle
Established	2001
Principal	Brooke Niiyogaabawiikwe Ammann
Grades	K–8
Number of students	415 (2023-24) [1]

Waadookodaading Ojibwe Language Institute (Waadookodaading) is an Ojibwe-language immersion school located on the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe Reservation in Hayward, Wisconsin.[2]

History

The immersion program was started during the 2000–2001 academic school year by the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.[3]

Mission

The school was primarily conceived to preserve the Ojibwe (Anishinaabe)-language in Wisconsin, where only a few dozen elderly native speakers were estimated to remain in 2019.[4]

Facility

Waadookodaading is physically connected to the English-language Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe School, but functions autonomously.[5]

Academics

In addition to state and federally-mandated academic requirements, Waadookodaading provides cultural activities such as harvesting wild rice and syrup, as well as snowshoeing.[6][7] The school currently offers kindergarten through eighth grade education.[5]

Organization and funding

Waadookodaading is an independent charter institution.[8] In 2024, it received $5 million in federal funding aimed at expanding its operations to K-12.[9] The Administration for Native Americans also granted the school $300,000 in 2024.[10] In December 2024, the school announced that it received a $1.5 million donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott.[11]

References

1. "LCO Ojibwe School Hits Record Enrollment at 415 Students". Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
2. "Voices in the Wilderness: Language Integrity". Dartmouth Alumni Magazine. January 2022.
3. "History – Waadookodaading". www.waadookodaading.org. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
4. "Wisconsin's Native Tribes Are Taking Action to Keep Their Languages From Dying Out". Milwaukee Magazine. March 27, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
5. Kim, Yvonne (November 13, 2019). "'The place where we help each other'". The Cap Times. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
6. Koran, Mario (April 7, 2021). "'Race against the clock': the school fighting to save the Ojibwe language before its elders pass away". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
7. "Waadookodaading – The Ways". PBS Wisconsin Education. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
8. "Search for Public School Districts - District Detail for Waadookodaading Ojibwe Language Institute Inc". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
9. "Northern Wisconsin to receive support from annual funding legislation". WSAW-TV. April 3, 2024.
10. Staff, Native News Online (August 8, 2024). "Administration for Native Americans Awards Over $7 Million to the Preservation of Native Languages". Native News Online. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
11. Staff, Native News Online (December 24, 2024). "Waadookodaading Ojibwe Language Institute Receives $1.5 Million Gift from MacKenzie Scott to Advance Language Revitalization Efforts". Native News Online. Retrieved January 10, 2025.

External links

• Official website