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High school students from communities throughout Alaska have converged in Juneau to participate in the Lasteen Leadership Training Program, which blends the study of western subjects such as math and science with the study of traditional Native ways.

Funding for the program is provided by a federal grant from the Alaska Native Education Program.

Dr. Rosita Worl, Sealaska Heritage Institute president, said the idea for the training started five years ago as a way to help young Native men.

"It started off with our concern for the status of Alaska Native men," Worl said. "We know they have the highest suicide rate in the country (and) a lot of serious problems. We don't always know why."

Worl said they consulted with a Council of Traditional Scholars to decide what to do about the problem. The Council of Traditional Scholars is a panel of Native elders who are experts in Tlingit culture and traditions. The council members are fluent Tlingit speakers and conduct their meetings in the Tlingit language, with a translator available for those who can't speak the language.

"We met with them and we wanted to know about the training of men," Worhl said. "We found out there was a training process where young men were trained to care for their families."

The rigorous formal training was part of becoming a man in Tlingit society. It involved training a young man to hunt, fish, and also to be able to protect his family. The concept behind the training is called Haa Latseeni, which translates into "our strength."

"When they talked about strength, it was much more than physical. It was strength of body, mind and spirit," Worhl said. "We took that concept that training and tried to transform it into a modern training session. They were taught how to hunt and fish, while now you have to have good education in order to be able to provide for your family."

From June 19 to July 2, students in the leadership camp will attend 12 days of classes and workshops at the University of Alaska Southeast. The students start at 7:30 a.m., with strength and physical fitness training. Day time classes include math, science, history, Tlingit and Haida language instruction and etiquette.

A large part of this training is teaching the students about what it means to be a Tlingit person. For example, the students learn about seal hunting: How to harvest the seal, how to prepare the seal and the spiritual aspects of taking a seal.

"Native people recognize that we have a special spiritual relationship to animals. We teach that kind of respect that you have to have towards the animals and towards the land," Worl said.

Worl described another Tlingit value called Haa aani, which means "Our land."

"We teach them about are relationship to the land. That's a cultural value that we have," Worl said.

Worl expects that some of these students may go on to become teachers or even corporate leaders at Sealaska.

"It's not enough just to get an education," she said. "They also have to know about who they are and our cultural values. ... We want them to know the values and be able to articulate them."

Harley Holter, 16, from Hydaburg, is in his second year of attendance in the Lasteen program.

"I help teach younger kids where I am from. I'm a language apprentice," Holter said.

As an apprentice, Holter helps instruct school age children in the Haida language.

"I want to become fluent in the Haida language," Holter said.

Shameaka King, 16, of Juneau, also is in her second year of the program. Her family is from the Angoon area.

"We are learning the basic culture. A lot of our traditions and stories that are told are starting to die out, and they are trying to bring it back and engrave it into the (younger) generation," King said. "We are learning the basics like how to introduce ourselves in Tlingit."

Tyler Taylor, 16, was born in Wrangell and is attending the camp from Washington. He is also in his second year of the program. Taylor said he is learning about his Tlingit Heritage and culture.

"Pretty much, we've been learning respect," Taylor said. Taylor added that respect for others is one of the most important principles in the Tlingit culture.

• Erik Stimpfle is a writer living in Juneau. He can be contacted at .