Independent news from the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance

Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Elder receives literacy award for revitalizing Hän language

Rebecca Clarren’s next stop on her book tour for “The Cost of Free Land” is Bismarck on April 29, where she’ll be having a reading and open discussion about the dispossession of Indigenous land. Photo by Shelby Brakken, photo courtesy of Rebecca Clarren

For Release #12-159
September 7, 2012

Dawson City—Education Minister Scott Kent will present Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Elder and community educator Doris Roberts with the Council of the Federation Literacy Award today, the day before the United Nations International Literacy Day.

“Ms. Roberts’ efforts to re-learn, recover and teach the Hän language over the years are admirable,” Kent said. “Because of her commitment to her language and culture, future generations will be able to connect to the history and traditions of her people.”

The Council of the Federation Literacy Award is presented annually to one literacy leader in each province and territory. Announced this year in July, the award celebrates outstanding achievement, innovative practice and excellence in literacy.
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Jodi Rave Spotted Bear

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear is the founder and director of the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance, a 501-C-3 nonprofit organization with offices in Bismarck, N.D. and the Fort Berthold Reservation. Jodi spent 15 years reporting for the mainstream press. She's been awarded prestigious Nieman and John S. Knight journalism fellowships at Harvard and Stanford, respectively. She also an MIT Knight Science Journalism Project fellow. Her writing is featured in "The Authentic Voice: The Best Reporting on Race and Ethnicity," published by Columbia University Press. Jodi currently serves as a Society of Professional Journalists at-large board member, an SPJ Foundation board member, and she chairs the SPJ Freedom of Information Committee. Jodi has won top journalism awards from mainstream and Native press organizations. She earned her journalism degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder.