She said it's very important for prospective leaders in the N.W.T. to be fluent in an Indigenous language. "You can communicate openly and freely, especially with your elders," she said.

The first students graduated from Kwanlin Dün First Nation’s Southern Tutchone Language Revitalization program on Wednesday ...

Like her grandmother at boarding schools, Gustafson said many elders became "fluent listeners." They understand the language but don't speak it due to past trauma.