Leech Lake Nation's Michelle Goose named 2024 Bush Foundation Fellowship recipient

Jul. 6—DULUTH — Leech Lake Band

member Michelle Goose was shocked upon hearing the news that she was one of 24 fellows selected from 500-plus applicants for the 2024 Bush Foundation Fellowship in June, which provides financial support to accomplished leaders who are ready to expand their impact.

"I was just really surprised that I had made it all the way to the top 24," Goose reminisced. "It's a really prestigious award."

With each fellow receiving a grant up to $100,000, funds are meant to support each recipient's future endeavors as part of a fellowship, which can last between 12 and 24 months.

In her sixth year as a faculty program coordinator for American Indian Studies at

Fond du Lac

Tribal and Community College, Goose plans to pursue a 24-month sabbatical, a plan she had in place through Fond du Lac before the Fellowship even arose.

"Through my institutional plans, I plan to develop some more curriculum for my institution. It's kind of a one-person department right now, but I'm hoping to expand our department and the program that we offer," Goose detailed. "Our enrollment has been pretty consistent, so I hope to offer more courses through the college."

Goose's interest in Ojibwe language revitalization has been apparent throughout her life. After graduating from the University of Minnesota, she developed an Ojibwe immersion academy with the help of some friends.

"When my friends and I finished our language at the college level, we were maybe speaking at an intermediate proficiency," she said, "but we weren't really at a level to speak conversationally."

One of Goose's friends had prior experience in a Spanish immersion experience in Chile. Hoping to mimic its success, the Ojibwe academy soon opened up shop.

"We knew that immersion was a good way to advance proficiency fairly quickly," Goose said. "That was something I did for a few years out of college before moving on to teaching in a more traditional educational setting."

Goose would later develop an Ojibwe language certificate program and organize a bilingual playgroup for those of all ages to build upon their language skills.

Goose migrated toward the Duluth area given Fond du Lac's efforts to preserve Ojibwe, particularly at the college.

Drawing from personal experiences growing up with limited exposure to the language, Goose sought to continue her revitalization efforts once her fellowship was secured.

"I'll likely stick to the Duluth area and do some travel to local communities with other Ojibwe language programs," Goose mentioned, "and I'd also like to do some international travel to visit with other Indigenous communities, like the Maori in New Zealand. They've had a lot of success with revitalizing their language and I'd like to see that in action."

Goose noted a particular difficulty with learning a language at an older age. As such, she is currently raising her daughter to be bilingual.

"When I was filling out the Fellowship application, my daughter was a really important part of that," Goose mentioned. "When I grew up, I heard words and phrases here and there, and that's the extent of the language I received. I've had to work really hard as an adult to learn language as the older you get, the harder it gets.

"I've been trying to start really young with my daughter and it's hard work, but I'm hoping to make things a little bit easier for her generation."

Despite proficiency, Goose emphasized her view that anybody learning any amount of Ojibwe is helpful in preserving the language.

"The more people who have more knowledge of Ojibwe just increases its vitality, and hopefully students that I teach will go out and teach others," Goose left off. "I hope that this work has a ripple effect."

Information for the 2025 Bush Fellowship will become available at

bushfoundation.org/bush-fellowship.

The Fellowship is open to anyone 24 years and older who has a track record of leading change and seeks to build the ability to have an even greater impact.

Applicants must live in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota or one of the 23 tribal nations that share the same geography.