Host Leah Lemm (Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe) is back exploring how Indian Country in MN is responding and adapting to the current pandemic health crisis.

On today’s show, Leah meets two dynamic education innovators who are helping bolster math skills for students, by drawing on Indigenous language and history, and creating fun and engaging digital games.

Leah talks with CEO Maria Burns Ortiz and Juliana Taken Alive (Hunkpapa/Mnicoujou Lakota and Standing Rock Nation) who is Director of Regional Partnerships for 7 Generation Games.  Maria Burns Ortiz co-founded the company back in 2013. Since then, 7 Generation Games has been braiding math, language, and Indigenous history into educational games for students and schools across the country. 

In November of 2020, the company was awarded a one-million-dollar COVID-19 Rapid Response grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, aimed at creating more resources to help meet the challenges in education during the pandemic, especially for students in Indigenous, Latino, underserved, and rural communities.

The popularity of these 7 Generation Games has grown swiftly among students, parents, and educators as everyone strives to keep young people engaged and learning through all the challenges brought on by the pandemic.  Maria and Juliana explain how the company has sought counsel from elders and students to meet multiple goals: to increase learning about historical and contemporary Indigenous culture and to demonstrate measurable improvement in math skills among students playing the games.

Miigwech to Maria and Juliana for your creative innovation, even during the pandemic!  

Check out 7 Generation Games here: https://www.7generationgames.com/

Listen to past COVID-19 Community Conversations here: https://minnesotanativenews.org/category/community-conversations/