The beginning!

It all began with a few passionate families with young children who believed in reviving our language and our culture as Secwepemc People;

The Beginning

In 1987, a small group of parents from the surrounding bands, Adams Lake Band, Neskonlith and Little Shuswap, worked together to start a Secwepemc immersion program for children from birth to five years old. This language nest was the first to start up in the province of B.C. and was inspired by the Maori Te Kohanga Reo initiative. The Secwepemc Ka Language Nest led to the development of Chief Atahm School in 1991.

Our Successes

Today, hundreds of children have been immersed in the Secwepemc language and culture and have contributed to the revival of the Secwepemc language. Chief Atahm School seeks to continually improve their program with the development of, and educational framework that preserves Secwepemc knowledge, language, and culture. To honour the Secwepemc value of k̕wseltktnéws, or "we are all related". The school hosts an annual conference, offers language teacher training institutes, and shares teaching resources and strategies with other communities.