In New Mexico Native communities, some teachers pass on customs and traditions, while some instruct in the traditional Western reading, writing, and arithmetic. Many times, through this process, worlds collide, as what Western society imparts, and what Native communities subscribe to, can be at odds. A skilled teacher, however, will find the middle ground where learning, and not a set of ideas, politics, or personalities, is the paramount issue.

Two New Mexico Native women have perfected their teaching methods and continue to influence their communities. Donna Becenti, an elementary school teacher for 39 years, has dedicated her professional life to imparting the importance of education in her young Navajo students. Ann Kahee, a member of Cochiti Pueblo, has worked to restore the Keres language. Both women have honored their ancestors in their work, and both have made stunning impacts.

DONNA BECENTI

Donna Becenti is a Valley High School alumnus, where she was the first Native American to be on the honor roll and graduate in 1964. She earned her bachelor’s in elementary education from Western University in Silver City and her master’s in elementary education from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Donna is a traditional Navajo speaker - Navajo is her first language. She lives in the community where she grew up—close to her father as he ages and loves spending time with her five grandchildren. She credits her father, a World War II veteran and former butcher in a local trading post, for giving her the drive and confidence to succeed. Both of Donna’s parents instilled education as a family value and Donna has passed that value on to her students, her children, and grandchildren as well. Her son Kevin flourishes as a business manager of a security company in Farmington, New Mexico, and her daughter Karyth is a graduate of UNM, planning to attend graduate school and is also on the staff of New Mexico Woman Inc.

For four years, Becenti was the project coordinator for the federal government in the Title IV Indian Education Program, but over the past nearly four decades, Donna has taught headstart, third and fourth grades, and is currently teaching fifth grade in the Gallup McKinley County Schools at Crownpoint Elementary School.

At the beginning of each school year, she anticipates the new personalities and talents of students who will enter her classroom. Towards the middle of the year, she senses a bond growing between her and her students. They know the routine and what her expectations are of meeting or exceeding grade levels in reading and math. She takes pride in a child who advanced in math by three grade levels in one year. At the end of every school year, she finds it hard to let them go. The cycle is never easy.

It is clear that children are the focus of her life. She says, “I never tire of teaching because each day is a new day, where something different is sure to happen. I always have a class clown, a very shy student, and many who make great progress.”

The impact that Donna makes is as a role model for her students, and the foundation she gives them to succeed. She wants her students to identify with her as a Native American in a public school setting. When Becenti started teaching at Crownpoint Elementary, she was one of two Native teachers. Now there are six, out of 21 teachers at the school. In her 39 years of teaching, she also served as head teacher from 1989 through 2003.

Edward Monaghan, principal at Crownpoint when Becenti became head teacher, says, “I wanted Becenti for the position because she was a lifelong member of the community and understood the needs of the students. I saw her as the person to get the ball rolling. She was sensitive to Native education and was also there to help implement changes for the staff and within the classroom. She chose lessons, methods, and themes to benefit her classroom and helped apply them throughout the school.” When Monaghan left the school, she continued as head teacher for 9 more years, though six principals came and went.

She still interacts with students from her first class, who are now in their 50s. She now teaches the second generation of children and eagerly awaits the third. She is fond of students who often show their appreciation by placing pieces of candy and notes in her jacket pockets when she is not looking.

Perhaps Donna Becenti’s most valuable asset is her humility and aspirations to not only teach, but to learn from others, whether they are her children, grandchildren, or her students.

She says, “It’s not always the product. It is important to make the process in obtaining that product enjoyable.” Her desire is to produce accomplished individuals and see them make an impact through their own careers. Her satisfaction comes from knowing that she was there to help plant a seed and then step back to watch it bloom.

ANN KAHEE

Far from the traffic-strapped Interstate 25, Ann Kahee’s home in Cochiti Pueblo is clean and practical. When crossing the threshold, there is no question that she is a traditional Pueblo woman. She lives by the rule that she and her husband are responsible for teaching their children the Cochiti way of life.

In the early 90s, the tribal council began discussion on why they were not hearing children speak Cochiti. The governor assigned a task force to study the issue, and they found that most people under the age of 35 had a limited fluency in the Cochiti language. Ann remembers that it was difficult to admit that they were losing their language. She thought of the sacrifices her ancestors had made in order to keep their culture intact, and was grateful when she and five other people were appointed by the governor to teach their people how to speak again.

The Cochiti Pueblo sought the help of professional linguists from the University of New Mexico. They realized that their training would teach them how to teach and not what to teach. After nearly half a year, the teachers went out in force, with a total immersion program. Their goal was to integrate the Cochiti language back into everyday life.

Ann says, “The children were like babies learning a new language. The students eventually needed to think in Cochiti and not translate the words to English in order to understand them.” She compared this loss of language to broken eggs, “You cannot get them back together so you must start from scratch.”

The language coordinator of the Cochiti Keres Language Revitalization Program, Celeste Naranjo, comments on Ann’s teaching, “She has excellent knowledge of the language and is able to teach any age group.” Naranjo continues, “Ann gets down to her students’ level. She’s patient and doesn’t get frustrated because she knows that language is complex. She teaches it well.”

Ann is proud of the “Language Nest,” another part of the language program run by Jean Quintana, and their Headstart Program run by Tony Herrera. She also smiles at the number of foreigners who have visited in order to learn more about the program. She has had visitors ranging from a group of Australian Aborigines to a newspaper writer from Japan.

Ann graduated from Bernalillo High School and devoted some of her adult life to working in the local elementary school library and to starting the Cochiti Public Library as part of a community-based program. Currently, the Pueblo and the state are working to get Native language teachers certified through the state.

Ann is doing a great job in reviving the Cochiti language and she is using her teaching position to keep their culture alive. When teaching the language, Ann declares that she gives those receiving her lessons a part of her life, saying that Cochiti can only teach another Cochiti language and the culture. She recently noticed an important difference at a community gathering. The village leaders would usually translate from Cochiti to English, for the benefit of those who do not speak Cochiti. The translation was no longer necessary.

Donna Becenti and Ann Kahee uphold very important values in preserving Native language and implementing modernized education. It is very important to keep the language and the ways of Native American people so that future generations can continue to pass them on. Both women recognize the importance of Western education as well because it is a part of this world’s lifestyle. Native American students can benefit from the knowledge of both cultures in order to succeed.

Debra Haaland is a recent graduate of the University of New Mexico School of Law and works representing tribal governments. She lives in Albuquerque with her family.