Cultural Education Program Highlight/Update:
This fall, Arctic Education Foundation hosted traditional art and plant workshops for middle and high school aged students within the North Slope Borough School District. These workshops bring cultural learning opportunities to Arctic Slope youth to get them interested and involved in Iñupiaq culture.
Traditional Art: Several traditional art workshops were hosted in Atqasuk and Nuiqsut to teach youth how to sew sea otter headbands. Each student was given materials to work with, and throughout the process they learned how to tie knots, sew different types of stitches, and work diligently to come out with a finished product. In total, 64 youth (23 in Atqasuk, 41 in Nuiqsut) participated in these workshops. Quyanaqpak Elizabeth Rexford for teaching this year’s traditional art workshops.
Traditional Plant:Hosted in Anaktuvuk Pass and Wainwright, students learned about sargiġruaq (stinkweed) and how to make a healing salve. In Nunamiut, Rainey Hopson also hosted a community workshop that involved a plant walk, sharing information about local traditional plants, and an art project. There were 41 participants in Anaktuvuk Pass and 29 participants in Wainwright, for a total of 70 youth. Quyanaqpak Katie Roseberry and Rainey Hopson for teaching this year’s traditional plant workshops.
AEF would like to thank Nunamiut School, Meade River School, Nuiqsut Trapper School, and Alak School for allowing us to come in and work with their students. Quyanaqpak to Atqasuk Corporation for hosting us during our stay in Atqasuk, as well.
These workshops were made possible by generous contributions from Arctic Slope Community Foundation.
Original source can be found here.
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