Recent News
The Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies (CAIIS), the Department Of American Indian Studies and the Bill Holm Center for the Study of Northwest Native Art at the University of Washington condemn the demeaning attacks in the media and the harassment directed at Dr. Holly Barker in response to her recent publication, “Unsettling SpongeBob and the Legacies of Violence on Bikini Bottom.” This article is an important piece of... Read more
The Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies (CAIIS) just celebrated their 1 year anniversary a few months ago and already have a $1.8M grant under their belt. Plans for the grant, awarded from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, include programs to support current and future Native students, along with both undergraduate and graduate research in the Indigenous humanities.... Read more
The Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies at the UW (CAIIS) completes its first year with a bang. The Center has hosted numerous guest speakers over the year, is finalizing a Graduate Certificate in AIIS, and will be hosting a Meet and Greet event for faculty, staff, and students working in American Indian and Indigenous studies across all three campuses. The Simpson Center wrote a great piece on the work the Center has done and the many things we are looking forward to.... Read more
Marvin Oliver, ’73, professor emeritus in the University of Washington Department of American Indian Studies and renowned contemporary sculptor and printmaker, is the 2019 recipient of the UW’s Charles E. Odegaard Award, the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity (OMA&D) announced.
The award will be presented at the 49th annual Celebration event hosted by OMA&D and the Friends of the Educational Opportunity... Read more
An Autumn quarter AIS course titled "Engaging with the Waterways: Welcoming the Willapa Spirit canoe to campus" was featured in an article by the UW Daily. The class focuses on the history of the tribal lands upon which the UW is built and with it, the waterways that surround and cut through campus and the tradition and culture of local tribes that lived and still depend on those waterways. Highlighting this is the donation of a beautiful honor canoe, the Willapa Spirit, to the UW campus this... Read more
We've got some great news and it's getting people excited all across campus! The UW has just approved the creation of a new Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies. Led by Jean Dennison, associate professor of both American Indian Studies and anthropology, and Chadwick Allen, adjunct professor in American Indian Studies, professor in English, and... Read more
Congratulations to Scott Pinkham! AIS Faculty member, Scott Pinkham (Nez Perce), '87, received a Distinguished Alumni Awards for 2018. Scott is the counseling services coordinator who leads the Minority Scholars Engineering Program in the College of Engineering. In his various roles and efforts at the university, he recruits, advises, and mentors students all across campus. He lectures in American Indian Studies and is adviser to the American Indian Science and Engineering Society student... Read more
Dr. Stephanie Fryberg has been appointed the William and Ruth Gerberding University Professor for a three-year term beginning this year. The professorship, named in honor of William P. Gerberding (1929-2014), who served as the 27th president of the University of Washington from 1979 to 1995, and his wife, Ruth Gerberding, recognizes Professor Fryberg's exceptional contributions and accomplishment in her fields of research - American Indian Studies and Psychology.
Please join us in... Read more
We've always known AIS courses are something special, and this month, the College of Arts and Sciences is sharing the news for us. Professor Charlotte Coté's course was highlighted in the College's September newsletter for being an outstanding example of what happens when you take students beyond the classroom. The story emphasized the experiential nature of the class and how it allowed students to meet and interact with Native communities in the area, something completely new for some of the... Read more
AIS faculty member, Professor Stephanie Fryberg's, article "Reclaiming Representations & Interrupting the Cycle of Bias Against Native Americans" was published in the Spring 2018 issue of Daedalus, the journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The issue is titled "Unfolding Futures: Indigenous Ways of Knowing in the Twenty-First Century" and... Read more