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Three Rivers Language Center

Research

OUR RESEARCH

Our collaborative research is community-based and focuses on the needs of our research partners in the various communities we work in, with, and for. We focus on nondominant languages and issues of language documentation, linguistic pedagogy, language policy, and the linguistic and human rights of nondominant language speakers. Our team has expertise in linguistics, anthropology, computational linguistics, language documentation and preservation, pedagogy development, curriculum design, international policy, international education, rhetoric and composition, publishing, teacher training, nonprofit management, strategic planning, and linguistic rights. We primarily work with refugee and immigrant communities, indigenous communities of the Americas, and nondominant linguistic communities in Southeast Asia. 


PUBLICATIONS AND FUNDING

Publications logoNSF Logo | NSF - National Science FoundationNEH Brand Materials | National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)    

We strive to engage in best practices as they relate to community-based collaborative research. To this end, we work to ensure that our work—from start to finish—is driven by our community partners, their needs, and their expertise. This is explored and exemplified best in our 2018 Insights from Practices in Community-Based Research publication, which was nominated for the Franz Boas prize. In this work and others, our community partners share in the production and academic dissemination of our scholarly work together. 

Our team has secured over $2 million in funding for projects related to the TRLC. This includes seven National Science Foundation grants, one National Endowment for the Humanities grant, and over $400,000 in donations. 

OUR PROJECTS

  • Coeur d'Alene Tribe University of Arizona

    Coeur d'Alene Tribe University of Arizona

    colrc team members ken hale prize new york copy.jpgOur team at the TRLC has been working with partners at the Coeur d’Alene Tribal Language Programs and the University of Arizona for over 20 years. In 2018 our team won the Ken Hale Prize for our community-based and driven research on digital storage and retrieval of language and cultural resources. These resources can be found at the Coeur d'Alene Online Language Resource Center. The Ken Hale prize is presented in recognition of outstanding community language work and a deep commitment to the documentation, maintenance, promotion, and revitalization of Indigenous languages in the Americas. 

  • Mon Heritage Language and Well-being

    Mon Heritage Language and Well-being

    Mon HeritageMon Heritage 2

    Since 2010 we have been working with refugees and immigrants from Myanmar/Burma in our local community and partners in Myanmar/Burma. This community-based work has led to numerous presentations and publications as well as a partnership with the Mon National Education Committee (MNEC). Despite the military coup in 2021, we continue to work with our grassroots partners on the ground in Myanmar/Burma on education reform through training and education. Our wellbeing and language research is perhaps captured best in our joint publication with community members for UNESCO  Refugees, language, well-being, and education: A case study from a heritage language program.