Institute of American Indian Arts College / Who We Are

Who We Are | Students & Alumni | Faculty & Staff | Faculty Bio

IAIA students have the opportunity to partake in an eclectic learning experience in a distinctive environment. Faculty and staff, comprised of both native and non-native individuals, provide nurturing support and serve as positive role models for native students embarking on new educational endeavors.
IAIA Students
The Dean of the College is

Ann Filemyr, Ph.D. She brings more than fifteen years of experience in higher education and non-profit arts management to her role. She served as Department Chair for Cultural & Interdisciplinary Studies, Founder and Director of the Antioch College Summer Writing Intensive, and as Associate Dean and Interim Dean of Faculty at Antioch in Yellow Springs, Ohio. She is a leader in innovative curriculum design to reflect values-based educational initiatives. She believes the purpose of education is to provide a structure for the acquistion of skills, attitudes, and knowledge for personal and social transformation. She served as a Teaching and Research Assistant for Great Lakes Indian Ethnobotany and Philosophy in the Native American Studies Program at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and attended the first World Parliament of Indigenous Peoples during the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. In 1994 she spent the summer at Zuni working with the Zuni Conservation Project on documentation and outreach. She is a poet and writer and has been twice nominated for the Pushcart Prize in Literature for her poetry.She has been awarded writers' residencies at Hedgebrook, Mabel Dodge Luhan House, and by the Wurlitzer Foundation.

FACULTY & STAFF (To view the biography of a specific faculty member, click on their name accordingly.)

DEAN OF THE COLLEGE

The Institute of American Indian Arts College is the academic department of the Institute of American Indian Arts. Dr. Ann Filemyr, Dean of the College, leads the faculty team that is comprised of both Native and non-Native artists who provide academic and artistic support, serving as positive role models for Native students embarking on new educational endeavors.

Dr.Ann Filemyr
Dean of the College

Image Coming Soon
Nina Vasquez
Assistant to the Dean

Ananda Saha
Assistant to the
Faculty

CREATIVE WRITING
Creative Writing has always had a prominent place at the College, but it has never been stronger than it is right now. The program’s strength lies in its students, who come from reservations, cities and all places in between to study with nationally and internationally-known working writers.

Evelina Lucero (Isleta/Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo) Department Chair	Jon Davis Faculty, Creative Writing	James Stevens (Mohawk) Faculty, Creative Writing
Arthur Sze Professor Emeritus

INDIGENOUS LIBERAL STUDIES
The Indigenous Studies Program prepares students in the liberal arts. Students are challenged to master competencies in critical thinking and research and writing. A range of culturally-based courses are offered in anthropology, policy, traditional arts, art history and Native American studies.

Stephen Wall (White Earth Chippewa Tribe) Department Chair	Wade Chambers (Cherokee) Native Eyes Program Director	Jennifer Coots (Navajo) Business/Entrepreneurship Program Coordinator
Stephen Fadden (Mohawk) Distance Education Coordinator/Instructor	Ed Wapp (Sac and Fox) Professor Emeritus

MUSEUM STUDIES
The Institute of American Indian Arts is home to the only museum studies program designed from a Native American perspective. Experienced museum professionals lead the College's hands-on, experiential program. Courses also address the cultural history of exhibition, curation, collections and museums themselves.

Jessie Ryker-Crawford (Chippewa)
Department Chair

Chuck Dailey
Professor Emeritus

NEW MEDIA ARTS
The New Media Arts Department offers a rigorous, comprehensive program of study that trains students in digital media. Students learn the principles from which new media has evolved by studying the history and theory of graphic design, film and the ongoing evolution of story-telling.

Carlos Peinado (Mandan/Hidatsa) Department Chair

Shawna Begay (Navajo) - Faculty, New Media Arts
Shawna Begay (Navajo)
Faculty, New Media Arts

STUDIO ARTS
The Studio Arts Department delivers all fine art classes required to achieve the College's AFA and BFA degrees. The courses are divided into five areas of focus, which include painting, photography, ceramics, jewelry/metals, and sculpture.

Dorothy Grandbois (Turtle Mountain Chippewa) Department Chair	Dana Chodzko Faculty, 3D	Karita Coffey (Comanche) Faculty, Studio Arts/Foundations
Mark Herndon Faculty, Studio Arts/3D Foundations	Linda Lomahaftewa(Hopi/Choctaw) Faculty, 2D/Foundations	Charlene Teters (Spokane) Faculty, 2D/Foundation
Jeff Kahm (Cree), Faculty, 2D and Foundations

ESSENTIAL STUDIES

The Essential Studies Program provides a solid undergraduate education in English, math, science as well as strategies for success in college and life.

Kim Parko
Department Chair

Annie McDonnell - Faculty, Critical Skills/General Education
Annie McDonnell
Faculty, Critical Skills/Essential Studies

Image Coming Soon
Michelle Montgomery
(Haliwa-Saponi)
Faculty, Native Science

FITNESS AND WELLNESS

One and three credit classes invite students to develop healthier lifestyles through education and experience.

Eva M. Flying (Northern Cheyenne) Native Health and Wellness Coordinator
Eva M. Flying
(Northern Cheyenne)

Fitness and Wellness Director