Ya Ne Dah Ah earning national acclaim

CHICKALOON -- The Ya Ne Dah Ah School of Chickaloon was recently selected as one of eight finalists for the American Indian Tribal Governance Awards, given by Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.

There are 16 finalists for the awards, including Ya Ne Dah Ah, and eight will be selected to receive $10,000 in June.

There were 80 applicants from 61 tribes and multi-tribe collaborations.

The awards spotlight tribal governance, and the best programs in the country. It is the third year of the "Honoring Nations" awards, and 32 tribal programs and initiatives have been recognized so far.

The goal of the program is to help spread information about exemplary tribal government programs among the 550 Indian nations in the United States.

"More than ever, it is critical to draw attention to success stories in tribal governance," said Oren Lyons, chief of the Onondaga Indian National and chairman of the Honoring Nations advisory board. "In the face of a full frontal attack on Indian sovereignty in the courts, these exemplary programs provide compelling evidence that Indian nations can and do use their powers of self-government to make a positive difference for their own citizens and for all of America."

The program is funded through the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations.

Ya Ne Dah Ah is Alaska's only tribally owned and operated full-time primary school and day-care facility. It is dedicated to giving community youth the skills necessary for functioning in the modern world while retaining and using traditional knowledge and practices.

The school, which has an enrollment of 20 students, receives no state or federal funding.

Students there learn Ahtna Athabascan history, language, music and art from elders, and science and math from tribal foresters, environmentalists and computer technicians.

The school's board also encourages intense parental involvement. Students there traditionally score higher on standardized tests than their national counterparts as a result.

Ya Ne Dah Ah will find out on June 18 if it receives one of the $10,000 "Honoring Nations" awards.