College of Liberal Arts Second Language Requirement

Fulfill your CLA second language requirement in the Department of American Indian Studies. You can study Dakota or Ojibwe language even if you are in a different degree program. Our language courses enable all students to step outside a Western viewpoint and see the world through indigenous perspectives.

Still in high school?

You can study Ojibwe or Dakota

language. Check out PSEO.

Why Study Ojibwe or Dakota Language?

The Dakota and Ojibwe Language Programs revitalize the knowledge and understanding contained in Minnesota’s indigenous languages. You can be a part of the global indigenous movement to revitalize indigenous languages and culture—because all languages transmit a valuable perspective of the world.

The Dakota and Ojibwe languages, like many other indigenous languages in the US, have become endangered due to the effects of boarding schools and other policies that prohibited their use. In 2009, it was estimated that there were 678 first-language speakers of the Ojibwe language and only five first-language speakers of the Dakota language in Minnesota.

Teaching Certificate Programs

We offer language certificate programs for Dakota language instruction to help meet our community's need for native-language speakers:

In this program, you can develop a level of fluency in the language that prepares you to conduct your own immersion classroom (taught entirely in the language). We connect our language program to state teaching licensure programs and other institutions that need certified language teachers. Our close ties help provide our graduates with careers and attract prospective indigenous language speakers and teachers to our communities.