BAY MILLS — Joining the Bay Mills Indian Community this year are Ojibwe Language Instructors Stewart and Brenda Bennett. Hailing from the Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation near Massey, Ont., the Bennetts grew up learning Ojibwe as their first language.
Stewart is the Second Language instructor for the Bay Mills Ojibwe Charter School, although he jokingly said that for him, it was his first language and second language for everyone else.
Both Stewart and Brenda learned Ojibwe exclusively as children — until they began to attend the school on the reservation. The teacher spoke only English, and Stewart said that he could not understand a word she was saying. Brenda added that the students were not allowed to speak Ojibwe in class or during breaks, or they would “get the strap.”
Stewart, however, took on the challenge of learning English, saying that he did a lot of reading to help him master the new language. He said it was at times difficult, but he was able to overcome the obstacles and learn English.
The Bennetts said that they learned about the Ojibwe language courses four years ago, and that Stewart has been enrolled in the Native Language Instructors' Program at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ont.
Stewart teaches Ojibwe language to Charter School students four days a week, while Brenda teaches regularly at the Bay Mills Child Development Center. Stewart said that the program is still being finalized and they will most likely be adding other teaching duties, such as after-school tutoring in Ojibwe for students as well as the students' families.
Brenda said that she has taught day care for many years, as well as teaching to grades 1 through 4 on the Whitefish River First Nation in Birch Island, Ont., and grades 1 through 8 on the Sagamok reservation.
Stewart, on the other hand, said that this was his first experience “working with babies,” as he will also teach at the Child Development Center. He also said that he would like to be able to get parents interested in the language in order to reinforce language skills — especially for the young children.
Of Bay Mills, he said that more people here want to learn Ojibwe than back at home, and to him, that is very exciting. He expects that part of the reason is because there are more fluent speakers back on the Sagamok reservation.
Stewart said that aside from Ojibwe people at Sagamok, there are also Odawa, Mohawk and Oji-Cree, making for a mixed culture at his home.
He is also on the board of the Ningwakwe Learning Press in Owen Sound, Ont., a non-profit publisher that promotes literacy programs. He has also worked in Lansing, Mich., for Diamond Rio.
Stewart and Brenda have had three children and four grandchildren, most of whom live in Ohio. Presently, they are living in a hotel in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., and the are looking for an apartment, although they did pleasantly admit that they “are not looking too hard.”
Michelle Willis, coordinator for the Ojibwe Language Immersion program, said that the Bennetts have been very beneficial to the language program. Because of them, the program should be able to initiate the outreach program for tutoring families in a master-apprentice format.
In its third year, the Ojibwe Language program is funded by a grant from the Administration for Native Americans (ANA), which is part of the Department of Health and Human Services. Willis said that the program started as a day program with 10 students, and within a month, the children were regularly using Ojibwe phrases.
“The program has been really successful,” Willis said. “We have exceeded our goals.”
She added that the program, now in conjunction with the Charter School, is servicing more students, but scheduling is presently limited due to the increased demand.
Willis is confident that the outreach program will be helpful in teaching Ojibwe, and she said that interested parents should contact her at the Charter School.
