GMCS brings in new curriculum to promote Navajo fluency

Fluency in the native Navajo language is decreasing with every decade. Ophelia Sanchez, the head of Gallup McKinley County Schools Cultural Education Department told the Board at its June 14 meeting that proficiency in the language is declining.

Sanchez shared that in 1980, 93 percent of the Navajo population was fluent, but now only 170,000 Americans know how to speak the language.

GMCS is taking action to turn the tide.

Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum/Instruction Gerald Horacek, and Assistant Superintendent of Student Services Pauletta White, presented an update about the new Navajo language curriculum the district will begin implementing over the next school year.

Horacek began his part of the presentation by going over how the district teaches the standards students are required to meet. He reminded the board that about four years ago the district brought in a focus group of teachers to help create pacing guides and help the district determine what they should look like and what things should be included.

The district used that feedback to create consistent guides for different subjects.

They created the English/Language Arts and math guides in 2017. They built the science, social studies, physical education, health, and visual art guides in 2018. In 2019 they focused on music and employability skills.

Horacek explained that the district has been trying to incorporate the cultural/educational impact of the Navajo culture into lessons for each subject.

One way in which the district is trying to improve Navajo language skills is by adopting a program called Stride.

Horacek said the Stride program is working with the National Indian Education Association to create a Navajo culture and language class for fourth graders. He said it usually takes Stride about a year to create a course like this one, but they’re expected to have the one for GMCS done by Sept. 1.

Horacek explained that the district does not have many teachers who are qualified to teach the Navajo class. He said the program might find a teacher from Crownpoint Elementary, for example, to offer the class to students in the district, such as those attending Lincoln or Navajo Elementary.

Stride is currently working on a voice piece for the program that will be able to recognize the Navajo language. The goal is to eventually have the program teach all grades K-12 in the district.

Sanchez talked about the importance of setting and meeting the learning standards for the language portion of the curriculum.

“If our curriculum doesn’t begin with the standard focus then we are not preparing our students to speak the Navajo language,” she said. “Our students cannot even speak a single sentence.”

She pointed out that most fluent Navajo speakers are now all over the age of 40. She explained that part of that comes from a failure in the district’s curriculum because currently students are only taught the same Navajo language lessons over and over throughout their GMCS careers.

Sanchez informed the board that one of the goals for the new curriculum would eventually have the students learn enough of the language so they could speak it every day.

She said a lot of parents have told her, ‘I want that bilingual seal on my child’s diploma. What are you going to do differently? How are we going to impact this language?’

Sanchez told the board that part of the reason students don’t get that seal is that they don’t have simple language skills.

“Students do not pass our bilingual seal diploma because they can’t move over the simple skills of just introducing themselves, recall, memorization, and simple basic verbs and commands,” Sanchez said. “They can’t answer questions. They can’t hold a conversation.

“They can’t explain the culture and tradition that we live by in the Native language,” she continued.

Sanchez went over the new program’s grade-level language objectives. The goal of these objectives is to have students growing and building upon their schema. Each objective is age and grade appropriate.

Sanchez presented some of the goals that will be put in place for fourth, fifth, and sixth graders.

Fourth graders will be expected to be able to recite a cultural teaching of the Earth, using terms that refer to specific family members, explain why the Earth and water are important to their lives, and be able to gather sacred stories on birds.

Building upon the skills they learned in fourth grade, fifth graders will be expected to be able to recite a cultural teaching of the sky, explain their connections with other family members, explain why fire and air are important in their lives, and gather sacred stories on insects.

Sixth graders will be able to retell their cultural teachings of the Earth and sky, express appropriate kinship terms, listen and retell stories related to elements of nature, and be able to retell the sacred stories of birds and insects.

With these objectives in mind, Sanchez explained that some of the Navajo teachers may not have the skills needed to teach these objectives. She discussed training options and noted that the district is currently listing many positions for Navajo teachers.

She summarized the new curriculum by explaining that it’s all about getting the students to become fluent in the language.

“We don’t want our students or our children to lose the language, so our work begins now,” she concluded.

By: Molly Adamson 
Sun Correspondent

Gallup Police responded to 2604 E. Hwy. 66 (behind the old Silver Stallion) in reference to a report of a male down and out in the field south of Silver Stallion with no shirt on Nov. 11 at about 7:10 am.

GPD Officer Brandon Salazar arrived on scene and checked for vitals on the person. No vitals were found and Officer Salazar requested medical personnel.

Gallup Fire arrived on scene and confirmed the individual was deceased. The Office of the Medical Investigator and GPD detectives were called to the scene to investigate.

According to Gallup police, the decedent was a Native American male possibly in his late 50s or early 60s. No signs of trauma were evident and foul play is not suspected at this time.

The body will be sent for an autopsy to determine cause of death. GPD Detective Philamina Chischilly is working to identify the decedent and notify next of kin. This is an ongoing investigation.

McKinley county is second only to Los Alamos County among the counties that helped New Mexico in its efforts to reach a 60 percent level of vaccination in order to reopen July 1.

McKinley County had 77.9 percent of people who completed their vaccination series as of June 14.

On June 18, N.M. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham confirmed that the state will retire its color-coded county-by-county system, along with the COVID-19 health restrictions on commercial and day-to-day activities on July 1. On that date all pandemic-related occupancy restrictions on all forms of commercial activity will be lifted and all businesses across the state may once again operate at 100 percent of maximum capacity.

All limitations on mass gatherings will be gone on July 1.

Businesses may still adopt and require additional precautions for employees and/or patrons, at their discretion, and are still advised to enact whatever social distancing and face masking measures may be appropriate to ensure the health and safety of customers and staff, in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance.

Facemasks, in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance, have not been required in New Mexico for individuals who have completed their vaccination series since May 14.

The state will continue to follow CDC guidance with respect to face-coverings: Masks will remain required for unvaccinated individuals, and businesses, workplaces and tribes may continue to require masks for employees, customers or visitors on the premises, regardless of vaccination status, at their discretion.

Until July 1, all counties in the state will remain at the least-restrictive Turquoise Level, where commercial and day-to-day pandemic-related restrictions are minimal.

The governor and state health officials this spring set a target of 60 percent of eligible New Mexicans having completed their vaccination series to shed pandemic restrictions once and for all. The state administration has been among the national leaders in vaccine usage and distribution throughout the months-long vaccination effort, and in recent weeks has made a major additional push all throughout the state, enhancing financial vaccine incentives for individuals and local governments, as well as advertising and marketing outreach.

As of midday June 18, with state vaccination data through end of day June 17, in hand, the New Mexico Department of Health reports 59.4 percent of eligible New Mexicans have completed their vaccination series, with more data still to come in. The state is anticipating a new batch of federal vaccination data for New Mexico residents receiving their shots from federal entities, which often lags by several days, by June 20, as well as New Mexicans’ completed vaccination data from the neighboring state of Texas. In effect, state health officials said, so far as there is a “margin of error” in vaccination data, the state is well within it with respect to the 60 percent target.

“Frankly, we need to be better than 60 percent fully vaccinated,” Lujan Grisham said. “The variants across the globe and in the U.S. present very serious risks to unvaccinated people, even young people. We all, each of us, have the power to stop the serious illnesses and deaths: Get your shot. It’s safe. It works. It’s that simple. Don't wait for COVID to infect you or someone you love and wish you'd decided differently.

“This week was a particularly productive week for our vaccination efforts. We will continue to push forward with getting shots into arms, and we need everyone – all New Mexicans – to continue to help mitigate vaccine hesitancy and resistance by sharing productive, data-backed information about the safety and efficacy of these vaccines with family and friends. Disinformation kills. We have to keep pushing back,” she said.

The state will continue to promote and execute COVID-19 vaccinations all across the state.

As of June 14, New Mexico counties with the best rate of individuals that have completed their vaccination series, and helped pull the state to the 60 percent mark, are:

• Los Alamos County: 81.5 percent
• McKinley County: 77.9 percent
• Taos County: 69.7 percent
• Rio Arriba: 67.5 percent
• Santa Fe County: 67 percent
• Sandoval County: 65.6 percent
• Cibola County: 64.2 percent
• Bernalillo County: 62.2 percent
• San Juan County: 61.7 percent
• Guadalupe County: 60.9 percent

As of June 14, the New Mexico counties with the worst completed vaccination rates, and where risk of infection and illness are thus highest, are:

• Roosevelt County: 28.3 percent
• Curry County: 34.4 percent
• Torrance County: 35.5 percent
• Eddy County: 35.7 percent
• Quay County: 37.2 percent

With Fourth of July only 26 days away and drought conditions not getting any better, the Gallup City Council had a decision to make at its meeting June 8: To ban or not to ban— fireworks.

Gallup Fire Chief Jesus Morales and Fire Marshal Jon Pairett informed the council that the county and city’s drought conditions hadn’t changed since McKinley County Fire Chief Brian Archuleta last presented the findings to the county commissioners May 4. McKinley County is still in the D3 and D4 intensity zones according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Morales and Pairett advised the council to proclaim extreme drought and ban certain types of fireworks.

“The purpose of this proclamation is to reduce fires, to reduce accidental fires, [and] to reduce accidents throughout the holiday,” Morales said.

The county commissioners chose to ban fireworks on Cinco de Mayo earlier this year, and Morales and Pairett encouraged the council to do the same for the Fourth of July. During the April 6 commissioners meeting, County Attorney Doug Decker explained that only certain fireworks can be banned. Sparklers and smaller fireworks that don’t go high in the air and don’t make a loud noise can’t be banned.

During his part of the presentation, Pairett explained that the Predictive Services National Interagency Fire Center looked at the time period between June and September. They determined that the recent La Niña caused above normal temperatures and below average precipitation. This, along with other factors, leads to an above normal potential for fire.

Between April 1 and May 31, the Gallup Fire Department responded to 27 brush/outside fires.

Pairett said the monsoons are difficult to predict at this time, but that they could start as soon as mid-July. Another concern is that there may be lingering and dry conditions throughout the summer.

The council approved the proclamation.

Councilor Fran Palochak, Dist. 4, asked the two men if a proclamation would affect the fireworks display the city is planning for the Fourth.

City Manager Maryann Ustick and Morales assured Palochak that it would not.

“In fact, we encourage the public to visit and attend our public display rather than setting off fireworks on their own,” Morales stated. “We’d rather they come and see the professionals set up the professional fireworks.”

On the Fourth, Gallup Fire Department will be checking to be sure people are following the rules.

“It’s not something ideal, I wish we could restrict more, but we’re restricting everything we can within our means and within our power,” Morales commented.

The drought proclamation will last 30 days, and the council can modify the rules at any point during that time.

People wishing to set off fireworks will be required to obtain a permit. The permits cost $15 and can be purchased at the city clerk’s office. The fire department will also have permits available as they check in on people on the Fourth.

By Molly Adamson
Sun Correspondent