Communities of Practice: An Alaskan Native Model for Language Teaching and Learning

Acknowledgments

vii Acknowledgments We acknowledge the help and support throughout this project of our regional grant partners and their representatives: Vivian Korthius of the Association of Village Council Presidents; Abby Augustine, Gayle Miller, Nita Rearden, and Bev Williams of the Lower Kuskokwim School District ; Cheryl Jerabek of the Kuspuk School District; and William Beans, John Lamont, and Joanna Wassillie of the Lower Yukon School District. If it were not for their personal commitment, the Second Language Acquisition Teacher Education (SLATE) project would not have come into being. We also acknowledge the administrative help and support of the University of Alaska Fairbanks’s Linguistics Program, Alaska Native Language Center, School of Education, and Kuskokwim Campus, including the editorial assistance provided by Leon Unruh of Alaska Native Language Center Press. Finally, we acknowledge the generous financial support of the US Department of Education Alaska Native Education Program (#S35A060055). Finally, we thank the SLATE sisters for their energy, enthusiasm, and occasional reality checks throughout the project. Your personal commitment , drive, and dedication inspired us all. You are what it is all about. ...