New Lushootseed Signs Welcome Students at CKA

As students begin classes at Chief Kitsap Academy Sept. 2, they will be welcomed by a new engraved wood sign at the entrance of the campus that reads haʔł sləx̌il, or “Good day” in Lushootseed.
Created by woodworker David Kotz and incorporating the Coast Salish-style black and red CKA Bear, the word huy’ – or “Until we meet again” – is etched on the opposite side, so students will close out their day at school with Lushootseed as well.
The greeting is just one of more than 50 signs big and small installed across the CKA campus just before school kicked off, part of a broader effort to build a Lushootseed “speech community” at the school.
“This is just the beginning,” said Cassy George, the Suquamish Tribe’s Lushootseed Language Program Coordinator as she helped managed installations in late August. “It feels really good to see the signs going up. It’s a good beginning.”

A speech community on campus
The project grew from a Dual Language grant that worked in collaboration with the Language Department, CKA and Washington’s Office of Superintendent of Public Education. George worked closely with CKA Lushootseed teacher Brandy Boure to decide how to use the funds.

“We asked, how do we create a speech community at the school? We have to create supports for people to speak when they’re together. Where are they together? The Commons, the cafeteria, the carving shed — those became priorities.”
Together, they envisioned signage as a daily reminder that the language belongs in every corner of school life.
Indeed, classrooms, bathrooms, and other high-traffic areas also got their own Lushootseed placards as well.

Positive affirmations and traditional foods
For cook Skylene George, the cafeteria was the right place to highlight positive affirmations and traditional foods. “She wanted the kids to feel happy here,” George explained. “So there’s signs that says things like ‘Extend good thoughts,’ ‘We care about you,’ ‘You are healthy,’ ‘Be kind to others.’ ”
On another wall in the cafeteria, a new Lushootseed seasonal foods wheel will replace the English-only version that has hung there for years. The wheel names clams, salmon, berries, and other staples of the Suquamish diet across the four seasons. “It connects what we eat to the times of year. It’s part of how we’ve always understood the world,” said George.

Carvings, graphics, and teamwork
Other spaces include the carving shed, where teacher Bearon Old Coyote asked for signs with phrases to encourage safety and good energy in the work. The signs themselves blend artistry and digital design.
Graphic designer Albert Treskin created layouts for each piece, working with Sound Reprographics. “Albert has been there at every step,” George said. “He’s been amazing.”
Installation has been another collaboration. Facilities staff, including Jon Morsette and Junior Santos, provided insight on placement and helped mount the signs. “Their knowledge of the campus made all the difference,” George said. “It really took a whole team to get this done.”

Looking ahead
Initially the state grant was fo

r $39,000 but in the second year was reduced to $22,000 with a tightening of the budget. That means some areas like the basketball court will have to wait. George hopes to apply for more funding to add electronic signage in the future.
For now, she sees the installation as a turning point. “It’s powerful for our kids to see Lushootseed every day,” she said. “These signs remind us the language is alive — in our food, our seasons, our places, and in how we greet one another.”
By Jon Anderson
Suquamish News Staff Writer