Saakaciweeta is open to tribal youth ages: 6-9, limited to 25 spots per session

The Saakaciweeta Summer Youth Educational Experience takes its name from the Myaamia language. The term Saakaciweeta means “emerge” and is used to define this age group of 6 to 9-year-olds as they begin their journey in the Myaamia community. Saakaciweeta began in 2015 and is in its early stages of development. Saakaciweeta is an additional component to our ever-expanding community program opportunities supporting our revitalization efforts.

Our goal for the Saakaciweeta program is to create a safe space for participants to learn the Myaamia language, experience cultural activities related to the yearly themes, and develop a strong sense of community between participants that will provide them with opportunities for interactions throughout the year. Myaamia language and culture is woven throughout all activities. Daily language use among staff is designed for age-appropriate comprehension and ease of learning.

The mission of the Saakaciweeta Summer Youth Experience is to provide a safe, supportive, and engaging language and cultural learning environment for children aged 6-9 to explore their heritage through Myaamia methods of learning.

Eewansaapita is open to tribal youth ages: 10-16, limited to 25 spots per session

The Eewansaapita Summer Youth Educational Experience takes its name from the Myaamia language. Eewansaapita means “sunrise” and is used here as a metaphoric expression for community rebirth, renewal, and empowerment. Community Elder Sammye Darling coined the term “awakening” to describe the community revitalization effort, which began in the mid-1990s. It is from this original idea of eemamwiciki, “awakening,” that the Eewansaapita program was born in 2005. The program is necessary because many aspects of Myaamia identity, including language and tribe-specific culture were not being passed down intergenerationally. The Eewansaapita program is one of many efforts to reverse this loss.

The mission of the Eewansaapita Summer Experience is to teach Myaamia-specific language and culture to tribal youth ages 10 to 16. Eewansaapita emphasizes Myaamia methods of learning and includes a focus on connecting Myaamia youth to each other in Myaamia places.

The vision of the Eewansaapita Summer Experience is to provide an educational experience that helps guide a new generation of tribal youth to be life-long students of their heritage language and culture and who will actively give the Myaamia language and culture a place within their lives. From this experience will come a generation who will begin another “new day” and will advance the efforts of Myaamia revitalization for future generations.

Maayaahkweeta is open to tribal members ages: 17-18, limited to 10 spots per session

Maayaahkweeta means “mid-day,” a metaphoric reference to 17 and 18-year-olds as they transition into more adult roles within the Myaamia community. Maayaahkweeta was launched in 2021, and is for graduates of the Eewansaapita program who are committed to advancing their use and knowledge of Myaamia language and culture as well as giving back to their community. The vision of the Maayaahkweeta program is to support older participants as they work toward self-defined language and culture goals and in developing their understanding of the Myaamia community ethic: “knowledge is responsibility.” In these pursuits, participants will serve as role models for younger learners.

Maayaahkweeta participants are expected to set their own learning goals and work via email with Eemamwiciki staff prior to the start of the program to revise their goals. As role models for the other participants, they are expected to speak and encourage others to speak the Myaamia language, model appropriate attitude, and behavior, and assist Eemamwiciki staff as needed. Participants will also be completing an exit survey or interview at the conclusion of the program.

Eligibility for Miami, Oklahoma and Fort Wayne, Indiana:

In order to be a Maayaahkweeta participant, youth must:

Neehsapita is open to adults ages: 18 and older, limited to 10 spots per session

The Neehsapita program is our Summer Adult Educational Experience. The program gets its name from our language and means afternoon. This represents the continued learning we do as adults. Neehsapita is a new addition to our existing education programs and we look forward to expanding its curriculum.

The vision of the Neehsapita program is to create a space where we can come together to share and learn as a community. Each year we will focus on the themes of the other summer programs, with the hope that we foster more interaction between learners of all ages.

Eewansaapita ages 10-17, Neehsapita ages 18 and older

Beginning in 2020, we created online versions of our summer programs. Our goal with the move was to continue providing access to summer program experiences to our community even though we were unable to gather in person. Even though we are once again able to gather in person, we will continue providing an online, self-directed version of our Eewansaapita and Neehsapita programs.

Youth between the ages of 10 and 17 are eligible to apply for the online Eewansaapita program and adults aged 18 or older are eligible to apply for the online Neehsapita program.