WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall today announced that the Laguna Education Foundation will receive $148,600 to involve Laguna Middle School youth in service learning projects that support student development and meet community needs.
The grant was awarded by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Learn and Serve America program and will involve 200 youth in projects that focus on the retention of tribal history, language and culture.
"With this funding, Laguna Pueblo will be able to involve its young people in developing solutions to the tribe's pressing challenges, including improving health, combating violence, and restoring tribal culture," Udall said. "Participating youth will develop leadership skills, learn about tribal culture, and take an active role in helping their community while also improving their academic skills."
The Kawaik'a Corps Project will consist of three Corps - the Summer Youth Corps, the Youth Media Corps and the Youth Language Corps. The Summer Youth Corps program will be an eight-week program in which youth learn to plan and implement community-based projects. The Youth Media Corps Program will engage youth in community and culture through the use of digital media. Youth will create issue-oriented public service announcements (PSAs), develop short documentaries based on researched community issues, present their finished works at community events, and upload their projects to a dedicated website/server. The Youth Language Corps Program teaches youth the Keresan language and prepares them to become youth language instructors and facilitators. The youth will conduct small language classes, work on collecting and documenting language components, and host a Language Fair for the community.
Learn and Serve America grants provide support to organizations that involve more than one million young people in service learning projects that simultaneously support student development and meet community needs. Service learning is a method of teaching and learning that connects specific learning objectives with meaningful service to the community. Students build civic and leadership skills while strengthening communities through service.
