As Montana's Native curriculum specialist, he has become “the face of Indian education” in a state touted as a national leader for teaching contemporary and historical tribal timelines in grades K-12.
His commitment to help teachers infuse their curricula with Native knowledge recently earned him title to 2008 Montana Indian Educator of the Year. He stands among a cadre of educators who have worked to bring Native-based curricula to Montana schools for more than three decades.
About 550 Native and non-Native participants pushed the recent event to record attendance.
Jetty, who works in the state's Office of Public Instruction, receives hundreds of requests from teachers, parents, school boards, curriculum developers and administrators to help them bring Native perspectives to their work.
The initiative is beginning to blossom across the state.
The department has been developing material and sending it to schools. Its Indian education division helps teachers develop lesson plans using Native knowledge. Course work ranges from music to social studies to language arts.
“We're laying a foundation at every school,” said Denise Juneau, state director of Indian Education.
But the new course in education is owed, in large part, to a 2004 lawsuit that forced legislators to provide a quality education that teaches students about contemporary Native culture and history, a constitutional mandate that was being ignored since 1972.
The Montana Legislature infused the Office of Public Instruction and state school budgets with millions of dollars in 2005, opening the door to Native education resources and programs at 438 districts in the state.
Even so, it's not been easy to convince a state school system to expand its curricula. There were decades of resistance to the constitution and the 1999 “Indian Education for All” law reminding legislators and educators of their educational duties.
“It took us 34 years of neglect to start implementing the constitution's Indian Education for All,” said Juneau. “Our approach is taking it slow and learning accurate information. We're not saying do it all. We're saying start.”
Teachers are encouraged to create one new lesson plan a month. By the end of the year, they will have nine lesson plans.
“A lot of teachers want to do the right thing,” said Jetty.
The doctoral candidate enjoys going to schools, “talking about curriculum and Native perspectives Š the other side of the story.”
He helps spread the message of Native education through humor.
“My father told me, ‘Mike, you should never criticize someone until you've walked a mile in his moccasins.' ”
“Why is that, Dad?”
“Well, you can be a mile away from him, plus you still have his moccasins.”
Juneau said Jetty's educational credentials, cultural grounding and practice of traditional customs have proved to be among his strongest assets.
“It makes him a good human being to spread the message,” she said.
Jetty, a citizen of the Spirit Lake Nation of North Dakota, has become “the face of Indian education” and a “goodwill ambassador,” said Joe Anderson, a Montana Indian Education Association board member.
“Mike is pretty much the one everyone calls upon to do teacher training, to come into schools,” said Carol Juneau, chairwoman of the Montana Indian Education Association, the group that bestowed Jetty's award.
When Jetty received his award at the education conference, he stood on stage, humbled with the honor, sharing but a few words of thanks and gratitude.
He didn't even tell a joke.
Jodi Rave covers Native issues for Lee Enterprises. Reach her at (800) 366-7186 or jodi.rave@lee.net.
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