The LSA has been a long-time advocate for federal programs that support Native American language preservation and revitalization efforts, including:

Victory! This bill was passed in the US House of Representatives on December 9th and was signed by President Trump on December 20, 2019.

Information on Federal Programs

The Esther Martinez Native American Languages Preservation Reauthorization Act would reauthorize two grant programs that support projects to preserve and revitalize Native languages in tribal communities: the Native American Languages Preservation and Maintenance (P&M) grant program and the Esther Martinez Initiative (EMI) grant program, provide opportunities for tribal communities to assess, plan, develop, and implement projects that ensure the survival and continuing vitality of Native languages. The legislation reauthorizes both programs through FY2022 and makes some key modifications: it increases the maximum possible duration of all Esther Martinez grants from three years to five, and it decreases the required minimum number of enrollees in Native American language nests funded by the grant program from 10 to 5 enrollees, and in the Native American language survival schools from 15 to 10 enrollees. This legislation would make it possible for more Native communities to receive resources to revitalize and maintain their mother tongues. These programs are a crucial source of funding for efforts to revive Native languages in tribal communities.

Action in 2019

Victory! The Senate has passed the act unanimously and it was also passed in the US House of Representatives on Dec 9, 2019. President Trump signed the legislation on Dec 20, 2019.

ACTION ALERT (Fall 2019): Address your support for Esther Martinez to House Leadership (The Honorable Nancy Pelosi, The Honorable Steny H. Hoyer) or to your Representative (see link below) urging H.R. 912/S. 256 be brought directly to the House floor for immediate consideration. We strongly support this reauthorization and urge House Democratic leaders to bring this legislation to the House floor for a vote and urge Members of the House to cosponsor. Read on for more background information [pdf] from the lead sponsor in the House.



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(Fall 2019): Address your support for Esther Martinez to House Leadership (The Honorable Nancy Pelosi, The Honorable Steny H. Hoyer) or to your Representative (see link below) urging H.R. 912/S. 256 be brought directly to the House floor for immediate consideration. We strongly support this reauthorization and urge House Democratic leaders to bring this legislation to the House floor for a vote and urge Members of the House to cosponsor. Read on for more [pdf] from the lead sponsor in the House. ​ On June 27, the United States Senate passed S.256 , the “Esther Martinez Native American Languages Programs Reauthorization Act” (unanimously). The Joint National Committee for Languages put out an Action Alert to help get Esther Martinez across the finish-line in House.

, the “Esther Martinez Native American Languages Programs Reauthorization Act” (unanimously). The Joint National Committee for Languages put out an Action Alert to help get Esther Martinez across the finish-line in House. On March 25, 2019, S.256 was placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders; Calendar No. 42.





On January 29th, 2019, S.256 was introduced in Senate and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. S.256 has 7 co-sponsors. The House companion bill H.R.912 was introduced on January 30th, 2019, and had 16 co-sponsors at that time.

Send a message to your officials thanking them for their support of the Esther Martinez Native American Languages Preservation Reauthorization Act. A sample letter and phone script are available.





Action in 2018

Unfortunately, the House never referred the bill out of committee and it did not receive a vote on the floor. It therefore must be re-introduced in the next session of Congress (see below for additional details).

Action in 2017

On November 30, 2017, S.254 passed in the Senate and was referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

On February 8th, 2017, S.254 passed the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. The committee also approved this legislation in the last Congress. S.254 had 7 co-sponsors upon introduction.

A companion bill to S.254 was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives as H.R.1169. The bill had 25 co-sponsors upon introduction. It is currently pending with the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

In addition to the Esther Martinez grant programs, another key source of funding for the preservation of endangered languages is the Documenting Endangered Languages (DEL) program, jointly funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Science Foundation.

Since 2004, the DEL program has facilitated the study and preservation of endangered human languages by awarding funding for projects related to the documentation, recording, and archiving of endangered languages.

Over half of funding is used to support fieldwork, but funding may also be used for other activities related to the digital recording, documenting, and archiving of endangered languages. Such activities include audio and video recording, linguistic analysis, and the preparation of lexicons, grammars, text samples, and databases.

The program seeks to support the professional growth of linguists and to capitalize on advances in information technology to create a digital infrastructure for the preservation of languages. It also aims to foster direct collaboration between linguists and indigenous groups.

Jack Martin, Professor of Anthropology at the College of William & Mary, received a DEL grant to record the nearly-extinct Muskogee, or Creek, language. With the help of Native American students from Bacone College and the Seminole Nation's Pumvhakv School, he is conducting audio and video recordings of elderly speakers of Muskogee in order to preserve contemporary Muskogee speech. DEL awards provide crucial support for projects that contribute to the preservation of Native American and other endangered languages.

Native American Revitalization Legislation in Past Sessions of Congress

In 2015, Congress passed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). This bill is the most recent reauthorization of the 1964 Elementary and Secondary Education Act since the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act. ESSA includes an amendment that supports the ongoing effort to revitalize Native American languages. This amendment was introduced by Senator Franken (D-MN), and the LSA was one of the leading organizations in support of it, working with groups including the National Humanities Alliance, ACTFL, and JNCL-NCLIS to raise awareness of the issue.

Sec. 6133 of Title VI of ESSA establishes a new grant program for schools and academic institutions that represents a leap forward for Native American language preservation and revitalization. These grants are intended to support Native American language immersion programs or otherwise support schools whose primary language of instruction is a Native American language.

(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are—



(1) to establish a grant program to support schools that



use Native American and Alaska Native languages as the primary



language of instruction;



(2) to maintain, protect, and promote the rights and freedom



of Native Americans and Alaska Natives to use, practice,



maintain, and revitalize their languages, as envisioned in the



Native American Languages Act (25 U.S.C. 2901 et seq.); and



(3) to support the Nation’s First Peoples’ efforts to maintain



and revitalize their languages and cultures, and to improve



educational opportunities and student outcomes within



Native American and Alaska Native communities.

While Title VII of the No Child Left Behind Act did address Native American education, it did not address language. The grant program included in Title VI of ESSA is a new program specifically intended to fund language immersion programs and promote the use of Native American languages and, in doing so, elevate academic performance in the Native American community and preserve Native American cultural identity.

Institutions eligible to receive such funds include any Native American tribe, school, university, and educational agency, among others, “that has a plan to develop and maintain, or to improve and expand, programs that support the entity’s use of a Native American or Alaska Native language as the primary language of instruction in elementary schools or secondary schools, or both.”

The language immersion programs included in Title VI of ESSA would be appropriated 20 percent of the funds reserved for national activities under Sec. 6152(c) of the bill. However, it remains to be seen whether the current Congress will fund any new programs for FY18 due to the likelihood of a very low budget ceiling for the Department of Education.

(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—



(1) IN GENERAL.—From funds reserved under section



6152(c), the Secretary shall reserve 20 percent to make grants



to eligible entities to develop and maintain, or to improve and



expand, programs that support schools, including elementary



school and secondary school education sites and streams, using



Native American and Alaska Native languages as the primary



languages of instruction.

In the 113th Congress (2012-2014), two bills were proposed in both houses of Congress which sought to enhance efforts to revitalize Native American languages: H.R.726/S.2299, the Native American Languages Reauthorization Act of 2014; and H.R.4214/S.1948, the Native Language Immersion Student Achievement Act. S.2299 would reauthorize and modify a grant program administered by the Administration for Native Americans at the Department of Health and Human Services to protect Native American languages, and S.1948 would authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to educational institutions to fund Native American language immersion programs. Both bills gained bipartisan support in both houses of Congress, but were not brought to a floor vote before the end of the Congressional session. However, the programs from S.1948 were included in Title VI of the 2015 reauthorization of ESEA.

Why Linguists Should Support the Cause

Native languages are endangered, and the predicted extinction of all of the approximately 148 Native languages still spoken within the next 50 to 100 years would deal a significant blow to our shared American and global heritage.

Native language programs reaffirm the value of indigenous languages and increase the self-esteem and self-efficacy of Native community members while also reducing the negative impact of the stereotype threats and toxic stress that many face in academic and professional environments.

Native language programs also bring together tribal members from multiple generations, which could help at-risk youth by giving them the opportunity to gain role models or mentors. Research has revealed that when at-risk youth have at least one role model, they are more likely to stay out of trouble and become productive members of their communities.

Tribal communities are currently fighting to preserve their languages. Congress can support these efforts by providing access to resources through programs like the Esther Martinez grant programs.

Taking Action: What Linguists Can Do Now

As Congress continues its work on these issues, the LSA will monitor the progress of these efforts and provide periodic updates to the membership via this page and other communication channels. You may also wish to follow the National Indian Education Association and the National Coalition of Native American Language Schools & Programs.





Adapted with permission from:

Downs, Mary. (2017, March 23). Native Students Help in Seminole Language Documentation. Retrieved from https://www.neh.gov/divisions/preservation/featured-project/native-students-help-in-seminole-language-documentation

Lee, Tanya H. (2016, February 1). 9 Ways the New Education Law is a Win for Indian Country. Retrieved from https://indiancountrymedianetwork.com/education/native-education/9-ways-the-new-education-law-is-a-win-for-indian-country/

The National Science Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities’ pages on the Documenting Endangered Languages grant program.