Youth Language Internship Opportunity in Partnership with United Houma Nation

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The United Houma Nation in partnership with the Houma Language Project received a grant to support Houma youth language learning and the establishment of a Houma Language Committee from the Administration for Native Americans American Rescue Plan Act Emergency Native Language Funding.

The 18-month grant focuses on the development of paid internships and a language council. The Houma Language Committee is composed of UHN Council Members, UHN staff, HLP volunteers, and tribal community volunteers who are Houma French speakers.

The intern project supports internships each semester for any Houma youth aged 14-25 to partner with existing programs or connections to learn Houma language skills. Youth of the United Houma Nation can earn $500 through a three-month internship. Interns can apply to their area of interest between the following three learning tracts, which will all be archived for future learning and preservation efforts:

Partner with a Houma French relative or local speaker for in-person conversations to learn about where the language is spoken, and how it changes
Contribute to Uma revitalization efforts online with the Houma Language Project to learn about language revitalization
Assist with language and cultural research with the United Houma Nation Archivists in an on-site project to learn about archiving and cultural documentation

Applicants must meet the following requirements to be considered for the internship:

Between the ages of 14-25 (note: you do not have to be a student to apply for this program)
Youth of the United Houma Nation (you do not need to be enrolled, but you need to be able to let us know your connection to the tribe in the application)
Dedicate 2-20 hours per week for three months
Attend monthly cohort check-in call
Write a four-page final report on language domains as described in the internship rubric
Stay in contact with the Education Coordinator
Track Specific requirements
- Houma French – Engage once a week in a digital or physical conversation with a Houma Elder mentor
- Uma – Engage once a week in a digital conversation with Houma Language Project mentor
- Archives – Attend once a week in-person archiving session at the United Houma Nation archiving mentor

Through the three month internship, running from March 8 to June 4, students will work with United Houma Nation Staff, Houma Language Project volunteers, and community language elders to complete the following objectives:

Understand the value of language and cultural revitalization, and its impact on the social and economic wellbeing of a community
Learn how to develop relationships for intergenerational cultural knowledge transfer
Gain technical skills in language documentation, digitization, video conferencing, and archiving
Gain soft skills in interpersonal communication, following instructions, language acquisition, and intergenerational team dynamics
Be able to communicate the state of a language within a specific language domain in a written report

Students will be awarded a $500 stipend upon successful completion of the internship. Mentors will be paid $500 at the start of their mentorship role. Those interested in the internship can complete the online application form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfRLt8mUKtbXShEmqWZbz2F1Mrxx3kLVzKhliChMrYE5LidPg/viewform

A live Q&A session will be held on January 18 at 5:30 p.m. using this link