Kumeyaay Community College

Please help us spread the word about two job opportunities to assist with public information and educational programs for the Iipay ~ Tipai Kumeyaay Mut Niihepok (Land of the First People) Exhibit Area at Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. Please reach out for more information.

Brush up on your Kumeyaay courting terms to help you out this Valentine's Day! Just a reminder: Tomorrow is the last day to register for the Spring 2021 semester. Kumeyaay Language I and Ethnobotany are completely full, but Language II, III and Kumeyaay History II still have some space!

Classes start today, so take a sneak peak into the curriculum for our Language I class! These phrases are part of the first section of vocabulary our students are learning. If you're interested in developing your fluency in the Kumeyaay language, sign up for NAKY 120 today! Please contact our office if you intend to register for any of our classes so we can assist in the registration process and provide access to our zoom lessons!

Haawka, Just a reminder classes start next week, we are offering Kumeyaay Language III this semester. This is an opportunity for you to complete the classes. Register or enroll now.

Haawka, For those students who have taken Kumeyaay Language I please come join us for Language II!

Haawka! We hope you all had a great weekend! Here are some photos from ours. On Saturday, Stan taught students how to make a Tule boat big enough to carry several people. It’s still in the workswe need to apply a layer of tar to the bottom to make it sea worthy, but it will be done soon! On Sunday we drove up to the Laguna mountains to harvest the acorns Kumeyaay love the mostthe ones that fall from the black oak! These have a lower tannin contenta natural astringent tha...t makes acorns bitterand so are perfect for making shawii. Normally these events would be open to the public, but we had to restrict invitations to KCC students and family out of caution due to COVID-19 We can’t wait until we can gather as a community again!

Try to pronounce and memorize these Kumeyaay names & terms! If you need help or are interested in Learning more, we suggest enrolling in our Kumeyaay Language I, II, and III classes!

It was awesome to have a few community members and students on campus to participate in demonstrations of traditional Kumeyaay work! We can't wait until students can come liven up the campus again. In the meantime we wish you all Happy Holidays! Thanks for all of your help Colin, we hope your bird trap is coming along well!

Haawka! We are very pleased to release our official course schedule for the Spring 2021 Semester. Look it over and plan out your course load for next semester*. Please note, due to COVID-19 all classes will be online, but there will be opportunities for students to come in and participate in hands-on cultural activities while following the county’s COVID guidelines. If you are interested in attending KCC and are not yet enrolled, you will have to register as a Cuyamaca Comm...unity College student. Please do this as soon as possible to allow time for unexpected issues. If you are a high school student and would like to attend KCC, please speak with your guidance counselor about dual enrollment. Dual enrollment in a community college sets you up for success, is no more difficult than the average high school course, and will give you a head start on a degree. We also have scholarship funds available for those in need, as well as a program in which KCC students can borrow tablets so that they can access online features at home. If you have any questions, or are interested in our student support programs, please contact us at [email protected]. *At this time, Introduction to Cultural Monitoring is not on the official roster. There were questions about how to conduct this class remotely. If you need to take the class next semester to graduate, or are simply interested and would like to take it, please send us an email and let us knowif there’s enough interest we will do whatever we can to make this course available.

During recent border wall construction, excavators cut right through one of our sacred sites to place an artificial barrier and continue to separate our people. This is a site of significance that we honor during seasonal change. Because of the developer’s lack of discretion and respect, the impact on Kumeyaay spirituality has been devastating. Please come join us in solemn prayer to help us heal this recent wound as we honor and respect our ancestors.

Dr. Stanley Rodriguez teaching his class about shawii! Enjoy part of his lesson with us! Dr. Rodriguez and his class have spent the last few weeks gathering acorns, drying them, and making acorn flour out of last year’s harvest. Today we spent time learning about leaching the tannins out of the acorn flour and cooking it into shawii!

Haawka! We thank you all for your interest in what we do, and we are excited to release our course offerings for the Spring semester! Registration through Cuyamaca Community College begins Nov. 16th, so mark your calendars! If you are not yet enrolled in Cuyamaca Community College but would like to take KCC's courses in the Spring, we highly recommend you enroll now. If you are a high school student that would like to participate in dual enrollment, now is the time to speak ...to your guidance counsellor about enrolling in Cuyamaca. Kill two birds with one stone: Get the credits you need to graduate WHILE getting credits for a degree! Our follow count doubled last week alone, so plan on enrolling as soon as the registration period begins to guarantee your seat!