The Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians of California is using gaming revenues to fund language preservation programs.

The tribe pledged $1 million over five years to California State University for research and classes into the language. The money had been going to the school's football program.

“How do we justify supporting athletics when our language is dying? ” Kim Lawhon, 30, an elementary school teacher who has started classes in the language, told The New York Times

The casino generates $30 million a year, the Times reported. About 1,200 members receive a monthly per capita payment of $300, the paper said.

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With Casino Revenues, Tribes Push to Preserve Languages, and Cultures (The New York Times 6/17)