By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News
Inside the Betty J. Taylor Early Learning Academy (TELA) longhouse, the sound of excited young voices and cheerful laughter carried out to a large crowd of about 100 gathered at the small field.
It was warm and sunny on August 12, and with the temperature reaching nearly 90-degrees, the parents and families of TELA’s latest graduating class were thankful to catch a bit of shade underneath canopies set in front of the longhouse.
This year’s Paddling to Preschool ceremony celebrated about 30 kids who successfully completed the birth-to-three program this summer. And the young learners are already eager to begin the new school year on the ‘big kids’ wing of the academy.
Said TELA Birth to Three Teacher, Samantha Marteney, “I feel very honored today. I’ve been with my kids since they were 5-6 months until they were three years old. It’s been an incredible three years with them. I feel very happy that I got to be a part of their lives and help them grow. I love you guys, and I’ll miss you, but I’m excited for you to be on the big kids side!”
One by one, the students emerged from the longhouse to an uproar of applause as their names were announced by their teachers. Wearing bright smiles, they each received a lei made of candy, which coincided perfectly with the graduation’s theme of ‘A Sweet Ending’ that consisted of gummy bear and lollipop decor.
With a strong foundation set, the kids are ready to continue their education at the academy, which is deeply rooted in Tulalip culture and the Lushootseed language.
After witnessing his son complete the first phase of his educational journey, Tulalip father, Payton Comenout, proudly exclaimed, “Today was perfect. The teachers are great here and he learned everything I’d expected and hoped for him to learn here. It’s everything you could want, for all our teachings to be bestowed upon him. I’m glad he gets to learn about our culture and our Tribe. And I’m glad he gets to take all those teachings to the other side and continue learning the culture in preschool.”
Since its inception, TELA has made strong efforts in teaching its students about their heritage and traditions. TELA’s cultural immersive curriculum has introduced songs, stories, and the ancestral language of the Tulalip people to the future generations of the Tribe at a very young age.
Sheryl Fryberg, TELA’s Director, stated, “We just had a curriculum meeting today. We were talking about developing the new curriculum based on the seasons, and we have all of the staff participating in that curriculum so that we can be teaching that this is our way of life, this is who we are. And sharing that with families, it’s just the most beautiful thing. That’s always been my dream – how do we share this with families that haven’t had the opportunity to learn much about their culture and who they are as a people?
“A few years ago, we didn’t have Lushootseed in the birth-to-three wing. We went to a work study program in New Zealand and saw what they were doing in their early learning programs – they started at the early ages. And now, we are already seeing a difference in our kids from starting at birth to three and when they go to preschool. They have more language than I ever had in my life at birth to three. Besides listening to my grandma, but there’s not any elder speakers anymore so we have to provide that. Otherwise we all lose our language and our culture. We lose who we are. This gives the students the opportunity to learn with their families.”
Over the years, TELA has continued to build upon that cultural component in and out of the classroom. This includes the recent establishment of five new playgrounds on the campus – all with Tulalip specific playground equipment that features canoes, local wildlife, like killer whales, eagles, and bears, as well as the longhouse, which was designed in the likeness of the smokehouse overlooking Tulalip Bay.
At the beginning of the summer, the students organized their very own Salmon Ceremony and held the gathering in their longhouse. The academy also hosts an annual clambake outside of the longhouse for their students and families at the end of the school year.
When asked about the importance of holding the moving up ceremony at the new longhouse, Sheryl shared, “The word that comes into my heart is divine. [The longhouse] is a representation of who we are as a people. It almost makes me want to cry, as they’re coming through the longhouse – and they’ve been getting storytelling in there throughout the year and having activities in there – having this culminating event in this place, it just means everything. It gives honor to who we are. I love that. It’s beautiful – our culture and our language are beautiful.”
Following the ceremony, the kids received their very first diplomas as well as personalized gift bags. The little scholars then got the chance to enjoy some sunshine with their friends and families while visiting the photo booth and the cookie and ice cream station.
Congratulations to all of the birth-to-three graduates at TELA and good luck on your future studies.