renee pfaller, phd

Oneida Language and Culture

I am honored to be your Oneida Language and Culture Teacher here at the Indian Community School.  I am a member of the Turtle Clan and originally from Milwaukee.

I am an enrolled member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, Shekoli Swakweku.  My family is Elm, Powless, and Huff. As an Ukwehu.we person, I also teach Oneida Language at the Southeastern Oneida Tribal Services (SEOTS) center in Milwaukee on Tuesday evenings. I am a graduate of Marquette University and Edgewood College in Madison.

My passion lies in working with Native children and teaching the Oneida language, history, and culture. My primary teachers were Maria Hinton as I worked at the  Oneida Nation School (formerly the Turtle School), along with Laura Cornelius, Randy Cornelius and Inez Thomas from the Language House.

New this year to our program is Iroquois Social Dance Music. Be supportive and give lots of encouragement. Have fun with the new words that your child is sharing with you. I will be giving assignments occasionally on our classroom website. Check out the OneidaNation.org language site and enjoy the Oneida Nation Language videos on YouTube.