To learn more about our current students click here.
Photos courtesy of UCD NAS Grad Student Lori Laiwa (official Doctoral Candidate!)
To learn more about our current students click here.
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A big thank you to the UC Davis Native American Faculty & Staff Association for their generous sponsorship of the 1st Annual NAS Graduate Student Symposium! With their help this event is sure to be a huge success!
Have you filled out your paper proposal yet? 1st Annual Native American Studies Graduate Student Symposium Engaging the Indigenous Americas Submissions due March 2, 2012 We are pleased to announce the 1st Annual Native American Studies Graduate Student Symposium, to be held on the UC Davis campus on Friday, April 13th, 2012. This year’s theme is “Engaging the Indigenous Americas,” and we welcome proposals from all current UC Davis graduate students whose research critically addresses the issues, concerns, and lives of Indigenous peoples of the Americas (North and South). Graduate students from all disciplines are encouraged to participate in this open hemispheric dialogue. Papers should be in English and 12-15 minutes in length. See the full announcement at http://ucdnasgrads.weebly.com/grad-symposium.html _ By: Stephanie Lumsden A small group of Native women both from within and outside of the UC Davis community have begun coming together to braid bear grass every Sunday afternoon. This group is lively and filled with different combinations of ethnic identities and personalities. This weekly gathering is a chance to affirm cultural practices for one another and a space to commiserate about the stresses of grad life. Learning how to braid and becoming familiar with the feeling of bear grass was an act of communion for me. It's experiences like these that make me glad I chose to come to NAS at UC Davis. The workshop is co-sponsored by the Native Women's Collective and the Me'Dil Institute. Bear grass has long been used by Native peoples who weave it into baskets. Its fibrous leaves, which turn from green to white as they dry, are tough, durable, and easily manipulated into tight waterproof weaves. Beargrass is used as the white "overlay" for basket designs. It is also braided or wrapped to adorn ceremonial dresses and regalia. (Information courtesy of the Me'Dil Institute). _Stephanie Lumsden is a graduate student in NAS at UC Davis. Her research interests include: Native feminism, social geographies of Indigenous women, Native peoples and the prison industrial complex, Native perceptions of space, place, and time, and internalized white supremacy within tribal governments.
Call for Papers:
1st Annual Native American Studies Graduate Student Symposium Engaging the Indigenous Americas Submissions due March 2, 2012 We are pleased to announce the 1st Annual Native American Studies Graduate Student Symposium, to be held on the UC Davis campus on Friday, April 13th, 2012. This year’s theme is “Engaging the Indigenous Americas,” and we welcome proposals from all current UC Davis graduate students whose research critically addresses the issues, concerns, and lives of Indigenous peoples of the Americas (North and South). Graduate students from all disciplines are encouraged to participate in this open hemispheric dialogue. Papers should be in English and 12-15 minutes in length. See the full announcement at http://ucdnasgrads.weebly.com/grad-symposium.html Nikki Morgan is a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of Fort Hall, Idaho. She received her B.S. in Sociology from Northeastern University and is currently a Ph.D. student at UC Davis. She is interested in studying how Indigenous communities can become self-sufficient through cultural sovereignty and ecologically sustainable food systems. See More on Our Current Students Page Patricia Killelea will be reading poems from her book OTHER SUNS (Swan Scythe Press, 2011) on Thursday, January 26th from 7:30 PM - 9 PM at Logos Books in downtown Davis (513 Second St.).
Logos Books is a non-profit independent bookstore, donating all proceeds to Doctors Without Borders and Save the Children. Patricia will also be on the radio show "Dr. Andy's Poetry and Technology Hour," which will be aired on KDVS 90.5 FM on Wednesday, January 25th from 5 PM-6PM and will be available for streaming at kdvs.org/listen. For more information, please visit Patricia's website: www.patriciakillelea.com _NAS Graduate Student Christine Willie has been accepted to participate in the "Decolonizing Knowledge and Power: Postcolonial Studies, Decolonial Horizons" Summer Program in Barcelona, Spain.
The program is sponsored by the Center of Study and Investigations for Global Dialogues. From their website: The international Summer School, “Decolonizing Knowledge and Power,” is an undertaking that aims at enlarging the scope of the conversation (analysis and investigation) of the hidden agenda of modernity (that is, coloniality) in the sphere of knowledge and higher education. This course is offered through the Center of Study and Investigation for Global Dialogues, in Barcelona, Spain, in collaboration with the Ethnic Studies Program at the University of California, Berkeley. The seminar will be held at the UAB-Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, Casa de la Convalescencia (Hospital de Sant Pau) . Congratulations Christine! Two NAS Grad Students have been chosen to serve on the 2020 Intiative Task Force. Nicole
Moore (MA student in NAS; PhD student in Education) and Cutcha Risling Baldy (PhD student in NAS) will each serve on one of the 2020 Initiative Committees. Read more about the initiative below. The 2020 Initiative: A Path to Academic Excellence and Economic Opportunity Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi has initiated a campus conversation about how to sustain and enhance excellence at UC Davis, building on existing strengths and resources to become a more active partner with the state in supporting higher education. The campus is now considering the prospect of a new future that will include expanding educational opportunities to an increased number of California, national and international students. “The goal is to continue creating a university that can sustain its rising trajectory through its own best efforts, leveraging support from the state but rising above the fiscal limitations we now face,” Katehi said on Sept. 21, 2011, when she announced the 2020 Initiative during her annual fall convocation address. MORE via Indian Country Today...
For the past 13 years, Dr. Kumiko Noguchi of Japan has been studying American Natives and their history. “I started when I was 22 years old,” she said. “I’m now 34. My research is still going on. Maybe it will take a whole lifetime for me because there is so much.” More recently, Noguchi has been interviewing elders and studying the culture and history of the Tule River Reservation Tribe. Read the full article here! An excerpt from the article:
This fall, humanities faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates are contributing to the constellation of events surrounding the book project, including lectures, films, paper presentations, panel discussions and art exhibits, and some are incorporating the text into their courses. The coming week alone will see three related events addressing issues of Native American education and environmental justice. ...The book project was established after September 11, 2001 to promote dialogue and build community by encouraging members of the campus and local communities to read the same book and attend related events and discussions. “The books serve as vehicles to encourage conversations that would not happen otherwise,” said Mikael Villalobos, “The book project brings people together. Events and reading groups happen not only on campus but also across surrounding communities.” ...Native American Studies instructor and PhD student Cutcha Risling Baldy (Hupa, Yurok, Karuk) has assigned Alexie’s book to students in her Introduction to Native American Literatures course. She encourages her students to participate in book project events in addition to reading the text with the class. “The book project brings the author to life and provides a way for students to interact with literature off its pedestal, outside the classroom,” said Risling Baldy. READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE UCD NAS Graduate Students Cutcha Risling Baldy and Brook Colley worked as part of the "Native Arts, Voices & Perspectives Project" which completed artist feature videos about Native American artists from Northern California. The project was completed by the Native Women's Collective where Cutcha and Brook are both members. From the Native Women's Collective Website: Thanks to a grant from the Seventh Generation Fund and support from the Ink People Center for the Arts and Center for Indian Community Development we are so happy to be premiering the first of THREE videos about some of the local artists from the Northern California area. The first video featured is for artist Marlette Grant- Jackson. Featured artists for these videos include: SuWorhrom David Baldy, Kateri Masten, Marlette Grant-Jackson and David Mata. Cutcha Risling Baldy was the director and project coordinator for the videos. Brook Colley worked as the videographer. This is the first of three videos. UCD NAS Grad Students Lori Laiwa and Abel Ruiz are both quoted in the article about the California Indian Conference which was held this past weekend. Many of the UCD NAS Grad Students and faculty were there and some presented!
FROM THE ARTICLE: Lori Laiwa, a Pomo, and Abel Ruiz were both UC Davis graduate students who traveled to Chico to visit and present during the conference. They met up with a professor Laiwa knew from San Francisco State University, Kathy Wallace, who describes herself as a Karuk, Mohawk, Yurok and a member of the Hupa Valley tribes. Laiwa and Wallace said they attend many such conferences, and it is always a pleasure to see old friends. In addition, both women presented on recent research and participated in several workshops. Ruiz also presented on his research topic, addressing the crowd on the Native American Gravesite Protection and Repatriation Act. "It's a place where indigenous people can share their projects," Ruiz said. To see the full article click here Read it: UCD NAS Grad Student Brook Colley publishes a book review in American Indian Quarterly!10/29/2011 Congratulations to Brook! The American Indian Quarterly Volume 35, Number 4, Fall 2011E-ISSN: 1534-1828 Print ISSN: 0095-182X Decolonizing the Lens of Power: Indigenous Films in North America (review) Brook Colley You can find the the entire review here: http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/american_indian_quarterly/summary/v035/35.4.colley.html An excerpt: Kerstin Knopf's book Decolonizing the Lens of Power: Indigenous Films in North America focuses on Native American and First Nations films and filmmakers as they create what she calls an "answering discourse" to the media-validated colonial discourse. Knopf samples a variety of Native American filmmaking genres, including documentary, short films, and full-length narrative films, providing a detailed synopsis and content analysis of several films. Since its genesis in the early 1900s, film has been an effective colonizing tool, impacting Indigenous peoples around the globe. Films varied from ethnographic documentaries depicting "exotic" and "vanishing" tribes to Hollywood narrative cinema depicting Natives as a savage race that must be exterminated or subdued to make room for Christian civilization. Like many forms of media, film has been used by those with power to generate propaganda, manufacture stereotypes, foster racism, and create in the popular imagination widely accepted justifications for genocide, land theft, and other forms of oppression. Both Canada and the United States have used state-sponsored films to legitimate their settler governments and land claims within their borders. As filmmaking became an accessible visual art form for Native American and First Nations peoples, it became a medium and tool used to express creativity, educate, and advocate for change. Brook Colley is an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians of North Carolina with Wasco, Japanese, and Irish heritage. Brook was raised in Corvallis, Oregon, attended Southern Oregon University, and is now a graduate student in Native American Studies at University of California Davis. Her research interests include Tribal health and healing; Oregon Tribes; Kiksht speaking peoples; Indian Gaming and the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act; Federal Indian policies and laws; Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation act; videography sovereignty; and Contemporary forms of resistance, sovereignty, and self-determination; Tribal governance and community development; Native women; Native art as a form of resistance; Cherokee Pottery revivals. Learn more about her here. Matt studies indigenous religion in the Andes, specifically focusing on contemporary religious performance in the region of Cuzco, Peru. He recieved his B.A. in Religious Studies from the College of Charleston in '09 and M.A. in Religious Studies from UC Riverside in 2011. He is currently pursuing his PhD in NAS. Matt loves music and surfing and misses his family back in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Dissertation Proposal, Family, Sheep, Weaving, and Roller Coasters By: Christine M. Willie As a recipient of the Social Science Research Council Dissertation Proposal Development Fellowship (SSRC DPDF), I began my summer attending the SSRC Spring workshop held in Monterrey, California. There, I met my Global Indigenous Politics cohort. With the help of our two research field advisors, Dr. Tony Lucero and Dr. Brett Gustafson, we spent four days further developing our proposals, preparing for preliminary fieldwork experience, and explored the beauty of Monterrey. After the workshop, I traveled by New Jersey to visit with family. Although time passed quickly, I did manage to unwind from the spring quarter and watch Iron Man with my nephew about 15 times. Before I knew it, I had to say goodbye and head to Arizona and Diné Bikeyah (Navajo Nation). Once back in AZ, I visited with my grandparents, aunties, uncle, and cousins in Tolani Lake, Winslow, Phoenix, and Tucson. Then, I headed to Tsaile to attend a Traditional Diné Sheep Butchery Workshop that was part of the yearly Sheep Is Life event. During this weeklong event I met many members of the sponsoring organization Diné be’ Iiná: The Navajo Lifeway, Inc (DBI). We learned about the Churro Sheep, its role to Diné, and enjoyed everyone’s company and stories. During this week, I also began the journey of tracking down the process of securing the Navajo Nation’s approval to conduct research (NN HHRB). Although, I found really helpful advice from my bizhí, members of DBI, faculty at Diné College, the Navajo Nation Human Research Review Board, and the Navajo Nation Historic Preservation Department, I was informed that the process could take as long as a year. So I started research for the applications right away. Following the workshop, I drove to Tucson to visit my bizhí and cousin. While down there I hung out at cafes near UofA, ate sushi for the first time, read Craig Womack’s Red on Red, andvisited Biosphere 2. After my mini-vacation week, I returned back to the rez, began research in the archives of the Navajo Nation Library, and continued my course work at Diné College. I took Navajo Language and Weaving classes on the Tsaile and Window Rock campuses. Although my nalí is a weaver, I never learned the whole process of weaving. This summer, she passed down some of her tools to me and I began. Learning from her and attending classes with other weavers, I wove my first rug. This was my biggest accomplishment throughout the summer. I gifted my first rug to her and now I am weaving a rug for my parents. One weekend my partner, Diego, came to visit. We went to Chaco Canyon, Albuquerque, and Ganado. Playing the roles of tourist, we photographed everything, hiked in canyons, wandered around cities, and took in the air that had just begun to clear up after the devastating summer wild fires. During Diego’s visit, he participated in his first sheep butchery, sponsored by DBI. I don’t know if he enjoys mutton as much as I do, but he definitively had a great time. My dad came out to visit too. We spent time at my nali’s house visiting family, barbequing, chatting, playing cards, and eating mutton stew. After two months on the rez with friends and family, it was time to return back to Davis to teach an Intro to Native Literatures summer session class. I drove from Tolani Lake to Davis with my cousin, who is the craziest driver in the world. Although I almost died on the ride, I was glad he was there because it made leaving Arizona less depressing than usual. In Davis, I began synthesizing my initial findings from my archival research at the Navajo Nation Library, started IRB applications, and finalized my NAS5 Fall 2011 syllabus. It wasn’t all work though. With my NAS cohort, we went camping, road the roller coasters at Six Flags, enjoyed white wine, and avoided becoming bear snacks. I even found time to attend one of my best friend’s wedding and barrel race with my horse, Jigsaw. My summer ended just as it began, meeting up with my SSRC DPDF Global Indigenous Politics cohort for our final workshop in Philadelphia. Over the four-day workshop, we continued to edit each other’s grant proposals, discuss the new directions of our dissertation projects, and share exciting stories from our taste of fieldwork experience. Although we headed back to our distinct departments from universities located all around the United States, our collaborations will continue and we look forward to meeting up at the 2012 NAISA meeting. I feel as if my project is beginning to become more concrete. As I envision an outline, I can’t help but compare this dissertation process to weaving. My bizhí wrote about this relationship between her academic work and weaving in the acknowledgements of her Ph.D. dissertation: “Linguistics is like weaving. You find one strand of color and follow it through the rug. You can’t follow every strand you want. For a weaver, it was easier to investigate one strand at a time […] To my Grandmother, there is more than one way to weave.” My loom is warped; the edge cords are in place; now, it is time for me to pick one strand of color and follow it through. Which color will I start with? About Christine Willie: Yá’át’ééh. Shí éí Christine Willie yinishyé. Dóone’é nishlínígíí éí Italian nishlí, Kinyaa’áanii báshíshchíín, Italian dashicheii, Tséníjíkiní dashinálí. Kótéego ólta'í nishlí. Ahé´hee. Christine is Italian and Diné. She holds a B.A. in Spanish and Foreign Language Education (Rowan University), M.A. in Latin American Literature (University of Maryland, College Park) and is currently a Ph.D. student in Native American Studies (UCDavis). Her research interests include Indigenous epistemologies and philosophies, Native American literatures, colonial and post-colonial studies, decolonization methodologies, weavings, and sheep. more
*Ed. Note* Remember third grade when you'd get back for your first day of school and the first thing you'd do is tell everyone all the amazing things you did over the summer? Now some of our NAS Grad Students are going to share with you how they spent their summer. (As most of us cannot actually believe that the summer is over...) I have a friend who likes to make lists. Taking a cue from her and being quite anxious about preparing for the start of the quarter I have decided the best way to tell people what I did this summer is to list it out. How I Spent My Summer… by Cutcha Risling Baldy JUNE:
Cutcha Risling Baldy is a PhD Graduate Student in Native American Studies and a recipient of the Ford Foundation Pre-Doctoral Fellowship. She has her M.F.A. in Creative Writing from San Diego State University and her B.A. in Psychology with a special focus in Health and Development from Stanford University. Ms. Risling Baldy is an enrolled member of the Hoopa Valley Tribe with ties to the Karuk and Yurok peoples. Her research focuses on feminist perspectives in contemporary Native culture, methodologies and theory development for Native American Studies and arts & culture expression (literature, song, ceremony, and oral histories). You can find out more about her here. *Ed. Note* Remember third grade when you'd get back for your first day of school and the first thing you'd do is tell everyone all the amazing things you did over the summer? Now some of our NAS Grad Students are going to share with you how they spent their summer. (As most of us cannot actually believe that the summer is over...) How I Spent My Summer By Angel Hinzo Hello everyone! Although I am thankful to have made it back to Davis in one piece, I can’t help but look back on my summer adventures with nostalgia. Although I try to maintain a balance of relaxation and work, unforeseen circumstances prevented the completion of my plans for interviews and travel for the weeks before the first week of school (more on this later). However, I am determined to find time to take care of these tasks throughout the coming year. During the final weeks of class in mid-June, I imagined that my summer would include visits to my sister in southern California, a visit to Nebraska, time to work on my academic reading list and possibly time to read a few non-academic books. Although I only placed a small dent in my reading list, and still need to read a non-academic book, I am completely satisfied with all of the adventures I had during my time off. My first trip of the summer was an Amtrak ride to visit my family in the San Diego area and catch up with my friends. This was my first time taking the train down to Oceanside, so it was definitely a new experience. Generally, I take the Greyhound down south but the Amtrak was significantly faster travel. The train was completely full as people traveled in anticipation of the Fourth of July holiday. I had not seen my sister and nephew since Christmas, and this was the first time I was able to see my brother-in-law since his return from service in Afghanistan. I was glad to be able to have family meals with them and reunite our Rockband band (seriously). I’m pretty sure the neighbors were happy when I left…and slightly disappointed when I returned a few days later. I took a road-trip up to San Francisco with one of my very good friends and crashed a science conference she was attending. Although the language of the conference was extremely technical, I enjoyed the opportunity to converse with those in other disciplines. We were able to take the BART into various places of San Francisco and drive through the city at night but I have yet to explore the city completely. I returned to Davis briefly and drove back down to San Diego where I was able to spend more time with my sister and family. From San Diego I flew to Omaha, Nebraska to visit my family in Winnebago. Unfortunately, I was only able to spend a week with them. While in Winnebago I met the Director of the Ho-Chunk Renaissance Program, the Tribal College librarian, and a few faculty members of Little Priest Tribal College. I also saw the flooding of the Missouri River which has been severe this summer. Interestingly enough, many of the people I talked with mentioned that the Missouri looks a lot like how it was described to look when Ho-Chunks navigated it prior to damming. After my time in Winnebago, I returned to Davis for a few weeks to check on my cats and visit with some friends. Then I flew to Detroit, Michigan to visit my long-time friend and her family in Macomb County. I had not planned on making this trip but was pleasantly surprised when I was able to book my flight and visit. While in Michigan I got to drive down back roads that I have not seen in a few years and visit my friend’s farm. Additionally we took time to drive to Sandusky, Ohio and visit Cedar Point. It was fun until we got lost looking for the Ohio Turnpike after dark. Overall it was a very busy and exciting visit. Once I returned to Davis I began the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning Summer Session Workshop Series. Additionally, I began preparing to teach NAS 5 in the fall. Within this structured preparation, I have also taken time for more leisurely activities such as going to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom and spending time at the American River. My original plans to travel to Nebraska before the start of the quarter have been put on hold due to my cat, Squeaky, becoming ill. She is 17 years old and looks like she will make it through her illness which is fantastic news for the end of the summer. I am definitely looking forward to all of the opportunities for spontaneous learning, research, and travel that the new academic year will offer. Angel is currently a Ph.D. student in Native American Studies, specializing in history, from mid-19th century to the present. She received her B.A. in history from the University of California San Diego. Research interests include decolonization, acculturation and accommodation, the boarding school experience, connections between cosmological beliefs and society, and Ho-Chunk/Winnebago intertribal, federal and state relations. She is a proud member of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. Learn more about her here.
Summer 2011 By Melissa Leal The heat did not dry my tears this summer As I wept for the loss of a friend of my brother The adventures and the time that could have been Were spent wondering why life is so difficult Why do so many bad things happen to special people? Just when she began to heal She was told “Wait!” One more thing…..you have cancer! Again? This time it is in your lung…aggressive Like her dog that was put to sleep three weeks before. Sorrow melted our hearts Not the heat of the sun. Brian and Buddy’s fight is over But my mom’s has just begun. Summer 2011 has not just been about tears and pain It has been a lesson on time And love And moments that need to be cherished. About letting go of bags and embracing life Never wasting one moment with thoughts of guilt or regret. Taking time to love myself so I can embrace the love given by those around me. Summer 2011…. I will not cry about you but thank you for opening my eyes and breathing life into me. Melissa is a descendant of Ohlone and Esselen peoples of Monterey, California. She received her BA from CSU, Sacramento in Ethnic Studies and is currently C.Phil in Native American Studies. Her research includes the reciprocal relationship between Hip Hop Culture and Indigenous Communities. She is also interested in Performance Studies, Popular Culture, and the intersectionalities of descendants of Africa and Indigenous Americans. Melissa also works on revitalizing the Esselen language. She is a lifetime resident of Sacramento County and teaches dance, jewelry making, and classes on revitalizing indigenous languages. more *Ed. Note* Remember third grade when you'd get back for your first day of school and the first thing you'd do is tell everyone all the amazing things you did over the summer? Now some of our NAS Grad Students are going to share with you how they spent their summer. (As most of us cannot actually believe that the summer is over...) How I Spent My Summer By: Kristina Casper-Denman So, I passed my quals at the end of February, 2010, and I figured, no problem! I can do archival work in no time at all and be done by 2012. Not so fast. Not all the archivists are helpful (still waiting to hear back from one place that I emailed in October 2010...), but three who were fantastic were (in no particular order) the Denver Public Library, UC Riverside, and San Diego State. What were the highlights? Denver had exactly one sheet of paper that I could use. The listings said they had a folder with correspondence, and they did, but it was a half-sheet letter which was interesting but not really worth the trip just for that. Went to Tocabe, the fry bread restaurant to make myself feel better. It worked. UC Riverside has an enormous collection thanks to the Costo family, and that was well worth the trip, plus they have an enormous room for work and local baskets on display. San Diego State's Rouillard Collection scans materials for you for free, and you can either email the pdf to yourself or they'll put it on a thumb drive if you bring one. Everyone was delightful at all three facilities. Special kudos to SDSU, since they had contstruction in their library the day I visited, and they made special accomodations.Side trip to the Riverside Metropolitan Museum for their exhibit on contemporary Native women artists, which was an entire room. Amazing artwork!http://www.riversideca.gov/museum/beyond-craft.asp Most annyoing question I keep getting? "Are you done with your dissertation yet?" Um, yeah, just about. Not even close. It's a great process but life keeps getting in the way. It'll be done when it's done, and I'm grateful for the opportunity. Kristina Casper-Denman has a MA in anthropology from Arizona State, teaches anthropology at American River College and is working on her Ph.D. in NAS with an emphasis in contemporary Native education.
Remember third grade when you'd get back for your first day of school and the first thing you'd do is tell everyone all the amazing things you did over the summer? Now some of our NAS Grad Students are going to share with you how they spent their summer. (As most of us cannot actually believe that the summer is over...) How I Spent My Summer By: Bayu Kristianto I remember writing my last essay for my independent study with Professor Ines Talamantez from UC Santa Barbara in the midst of June. I was so relieved because eventually I completed all the assignments for the Spring Quarter, and submitting that last essay for me actually marked the very end of the quarter. I was determined that I would spend the summer time reading all the books that I had bought but which I had not had the opportunity to read. In addition, I made up my mind to finish reading all the books used for the classes for the three quarters I had completed, which I had not had the convenience of reading thoroughly. I spent the last two weeks in June making daily visits to the Shields Library to read a number of books. Unfortunately, I almost finished reading one book, and managed to read only the first few pages of other books I had intended to read. As June came to an end, I grew anxious because I needed a job with which I could earn money to support my life during the summer. I was lucky because Professor Ines Hernandez-Avila needed another research assistant and I started working for Professor Hernandez-Avila in the first week of July. The first thing I did for her was sorting different pieces of writing, both those she had written and those she had collected, including all her poems and short stories that she wanted to publish. I enjoyed this work since as I was reading her poems and short stories I became more familiar with Professor Hernandez-Avila’s literary and scholarly work. I believe what I did was important because I helped her organize all of her writing and documents, which were an accumulation of years of work and research. I did this work in Professor Montejo’s office, so I got to experience the daily life and atmosphere of our department as well. The next thing I did was helping Professor Hernandez-Avila in her research on the Conchero dance in Mexico for future publication as a book. Again, I had to sift through all the material she had collected with regard to the dance, which came in at least four boxes. I spent every day skimming a lot of articles and tried to find the parts which were considered relevant to the research. One day, she gave me a list of items which I had to find in the library or request through the Inter-Library Loan. I managed to obtain almost all the material she needed, except for some which the library could not find anywhere. It was an exciting process since I obtained a number of materials which I would love to read thoroughly myself, and which were relevant to my own research as well. After I got almost all of the items on the list, I skimmed them and made a short notation for each item, in which I expressed what I thought about the book and in what way the book was relevant to her research. Similar to what I had done previously, I marked places in the books and essays which I thought she could incorporate in her research. Aside from this work, I had also decided to sharpen my skills in photography. I bought, borrowed, read, and watched a number of books, magazines, and films on digital photography, and I tried to find opportunities in which I could use my digital camera to make sharp, interesting, and artistic pictures. For this purpose, I made a short travel to San Francisco, staying in a cheap hostel for three days, where I met travelers from different parts of the world, most of them in their twenties. During my stay in San Francisco, I focused on honing my skill in urban photography. For this purpose, I visited a number of places of interest in San Francisco’s cityscape and played the role of a photographer, instead of a tourist. I managed to capture great pictures of the city’s architecture. (Please visit my Facebook to see the pictures. My Facebook name: Bayu Baladewa.) However, this process will not end as this summer break ends. Photography is a skill that needs years to master, despite the fact that I have owned my DSLR for two years (and, sadly, am still far from being an expert photographer) and the process is a life-long one, especially since the technology of digital photography keeps progressing from day to day. My summer break may not be spectacular. I may not have had the chance to make international travel to some of the great places on earth. Nevertheless, I feel satisfied for having done something which would support both my academic development and my skill in the hobby which I like most. Helping Professor Hernandez-Avila with her research is certainly a rewarding experience as I learned more about indigenous issues in North America and Mexico. I am looking forward to being a research assistant in the following summer, if the same opportunity opens up. Furthermore, I dream that I can visit some great places both in America and abroad in which my photographic skills can be put to a test. There is always time to do that in another summer, and in more and more summers to come. Bayu Kristianto is an international student from Indonesia. He is an instructor at the English Department, University of Indonesia. He received his BA in English from the University of Indonesia, in 2001. He graduated with an MA degree from SUNY Buffalo in 2006, majoring in American Studies with a focus on Native American religion and philosophy. He is now pursuing a Ph.D. in Native American Studies at UC Davis. His research interests include Native American religion and philosophy, Native American history, Cultural Studies (on space and power), Western philosophy, the history of Christianity, and literature.
Learn more about the NAS Graduate Students at UC Davis!
http://nas.ucdavis.edu/site/grad/gradstudents.html The "Uneasy Remains" Film is a project of Wren Usdi Productions, a film production company run by NAS Grad Students Brook Colley and Cutcha Risling Baldy (along with UCD English Grad Student Gina Caison). The project also involves several grad students from the NAS department and other departments across the UCD Campus. The Uneasy Remains Film Project and Research Interest Group examines the history of studying and collecting Indigenous human remains at UC Davis and how this history has been informed by the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. The film also queries the gendered dynamics of this history as it relates to academic research and the representations of Indigenous bodies. the project represents a collaborative effort of local tribes, community members, and students in multiple disciplines and departments at UC Davis. It brings these groups into dialogue on this complex issue and aims to promote interdisciplinary educational opportunities for students interested in learning more about the history of the study of Indigenous human remains and repatriation movements. the project will result in a feature length film, curriculum materials, and an archive database of research materials for use by tribes, schools, and other organizations. Although the project examines UC Davis as a case study for these issues, this dialogue has implications for museums and Native groups throughout the nation and globe, as access to human remains and repatriation movements represent a significant node in the ongoing conversation regarding the human rights struggles of Indigenous peoples. So far the Uneasy Remains Research Interest Group includes a network of 25 students and the support of several faculty members. Currently, the project is supported by the UC Davis Consortium for Women and Research, the Yocha Dehe Endowed Chair in Native American Studies, and the Native Women's Collective. For more information, please email [email protected]. New to the site today: James Sarmento is a member of the Shasta Nation and a graduate student in Native American Studies at the University of California, Davis. He received his BA in Anthropology and in Ethnic Studies from CSU Sacramento. He is the executive director of the Native American Language Center and the project coordinator for the J.P. Harrington Database Project. His research focuses on language revitalization, specifically the Shasta language. You can find out more about all of our students by visiting the current students page.
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Welcome!
Welcome to the Davis Native American Studies Graduate Student Blog. This blog was started as a place to update on all of the amazing work that is being done by the Graduate Students in the UC Davis Native American Studies Department. The Graduate Program in Native American Studies was approved in 1998, making UC Davis only the second university in the nation to offer a Ph.D. in Native American Studies. In Fall 1999, the Department welcomed its first group of students enrolled in the M.A. and Ph.D. Programs in Native American Studies.
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DisclaimerThis blog is an independent site run by the NAS Grad Students at UCD. The views expressed on this website are not the views of UC Davis Native American Studies nor the University of California Davis and/or its affiliates. |