My name is Joni Kitmiiq Spiess, and I was born in Nome, Alaska and am of Inupiaq heritage. I have been writing now for just under three years, and have two books that have been published. “Alaska Native Games and How to Play Them” and “Mittens and Mukluks”. As a long time educator in the state of Alaska, I saw and responded to the need for our students to have access to books that represent their culture and identity. It is my goal to continue this work.
I worked recently for Cook Inlet Tribal Council based in Anchorage, Alaska and wrote a culturally responsive curriculum for mobile fabrication labs that we are sending to rural Alaska. One of the goals of the grants that I was working under was to, “Increase knowledge and exposure to Math and Science” to students that have fallen behind National or State standards. I see this in a way as coming full circle as I can give back in a small way to the culture that was taken or not available during the period in which our children and families were torn apart to attend Federal Boarding Schools.
We are healing in our own ways as communities, and the process to reclaim identity is stronger than ever. It is such an honor to be a part of the community of continuous efforts to preserve and enhance understanding of our traditional ways of knowing.