ALICE COZZI HERITAGE LANGUAGE FOUNDATION

Mission
The Alice Cozzi Heritage Language Foundation's mission is to help raise awareness of and support for the vitality of endangered heritage languages. The group expects to offer six rounds of small grants to directly support educationally and economically underserved language communities.
 
History
The Alice Cozzi Heritage Language Foundation was created in 2002 to honor our grandmother Alice Cozzi (August 4, 1906 - May 29, 1979). As a school principal, Alice was concerned with the equitable and effective instruction of all children. As a language teacher, she was interested in creating accurate, instructive and engaging pedagogical materials for Italian language and wrote a Master's thesis in 1933 on that topic.
 
2009 Small Grants Announcement
Individuals and groups working to revitalize and maintain endangered heritage languages are invited to apply for small grants (up to 500 USD*).

Past awards have been made for the publication and distribution of dictionaries, lesson books, reference books, and literary works as well as for native speaker stipends, among other projects.

The deadline for receipt of applications is July 15, 2009. Award recipients agree to submit a copy of the funded work (or a description if the project is not written).

Past applicants are welcome to apply for a revised project.

Applications should be made within an e-mail (i.e., not as an attachment) to achlf@earthlink.net, addressing the following in detail:

(1) Describe the community the project serves.

(2) Where is the language spoken and how many people speak it?

(3) What materials are available in the language?

(4) Describe your involvement in the language community.

(5) Describe the project, including the objectives, timeline and other funding received and/or applied for; describe how our small grant would be used and how much you are requesting.

Also include the following information:

• Name(s)

• Mailing address

• E-mail address

• Phone number

• Project location, address, and phone (if different)

• Rotuman language teacher's manual. Rotuman diaspora: California and Australia

• Guide to Reading and Writing Pilbara Languages. Western Australia

• Reading/teaching materials for Thadou-Kuki. Manipur, India

• Kokama-Kokamilla song, story, and narrative DVD. Peruvian Amazon

• Tirax tales and calendar. Malakula, Vanuatu

• Trilingual Bih-Ede-Vietnamese lexicon and texts. Dac Lac, Vietnam

• Mavea trilingual dictionary. Vanuatu

• Tienkan lexicon and bilingual cassette. Burkina Fas

• Stipends for native speakers for Umatilla immersion classes: Pendleton, Oregon

• Subsidized distribution of trilingual native plant book (Tlacolula de Matamoros Zapotec): Oaxaca, Mexico

• Subsidized distribution of bilingual (Totonac/Spanish) children's book: Yecuatla, Veracruz, Mexico

• Stipends for Yanomae native speakers for thematic bilingual dictionary: Boa Vista-Roraima, Brazil

• Stipends for native speakers to create Sahaptin learning materials for library: Toppenish, WA

• Completion of Korring primer: Ntezi and Okpoto Communities, Ebonyi State, Nigeria

• Printing and distribution of Shiwilu workbook and mini-dictionary: Jeberos, Loreto, Peru

• Native speaker stipends for Ama language materials development: Cairo, Egypt

• Completion and publication of Tiefo dictionary: Daramandougou, Burkina Faso

• Printing and distribution of Tamajaq novel: Tahoua, Niger

• Printing and distribution of Guevea de Humboldt Zapotec primer: Oaxaca, Mexico

• Native speaker stipend for training in lexicography and publishing of Southern Gondi dictionary: Nagapalli, Maharashtra, India

• Printing and distribution of Chuvash-Russian dictionary of technical terms: Chuvashia, Cheboksary, Russia

2005 Awardees

• Publication and distribution of Kalabari tutorial book, Rivers State, Nigeria
• Publication and distribution of Wara dictionary and calendar, Burkina Faso
• Publication and distribution of Sia Pedee (Epera) dictionary, Northern Ecuador
• Publication and distribution of Tlacolula de Matamoros Zapotec trilingual native plant book, Oaxaca, Mexico and Los Angeles, California
• Wukchumni Immersion Camp, California
• Publication of Kamasin and Mansi ethnic history and phonostatistics, Siberia
 
2003 Awardees (Partial funding)

• "Shela" to print and distribute a Tamajaq (eastern Tewellemet) novel
• "Ngadlu Nharangga warra wanggadja (We are speaking Narungga)" to print and distribute a student dictionary to local schools
• "Mugu Education Project" to print two books
• "Anishinaabemowin language table" to hold weekly immersion gatherings
• "Umonhon 101" to record and distribute Omaha language materials
• "Tewa-Nambe Pueblo Language Project" to create teaching materials
• "Thangmi-Nepali-English dictionary" to edit and print dictionary
• "Shipibo storybook" to print and distribute booklet in Pucallpa, Peru
• "Ojibwe dictionary" to purchase and distribute dictionaries to local schools