About the Program
MAAWANJI´ IDIWAG
They Come Together
Maawanji´idiwag (They Come Together) is a project that emerged from Ojibwe communities in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin. Tribal Head Start and Early Head Start programs came together and identified a collective need to find a culturally relevant early childhood teacher education program. They were seekers of knowledge, looking for a baccalaureate degree program with the curriculum taught from a native perspective. They envisioned a program that would focus on native language immersion for young children to further their tribal goals of indigenous language revitalization. They needed a program to be offered on weekends so that their staff could continue working in their communities with young native children ages birth to five, and their families. They wanted the courses to be delivered within tribal communities to encourage participation as well as the sharing of ideas.
They approached the University of Minnesota – Duluth with an idea of—together—creating a program together that would meet the unique needs of tribal early childhood staff, children, families, and communities. Maawanji´idiwag was created in the spirit of true partnership between the tribes and the university. The name of the project represents the coming together of peoples, communities, ways of knowing, and world views, so that future generations will be strong.