Recent/Current Participants of the American Indian Leadership Program

Recent/Current Participants

The American Indian Leadership Program was established to increase the number and quality of educational leaders working in schools and other educational organizations serving American Indian and Alaska Native students. The current personnel preparation grant, “Principals for Student Success,” is funded by the Office of Indian Education, U.S. Department of Education. Participants will earn a master’s degree in Educational Leadership with principal certification. In addition to the master’s students, a number of AILP-affiliated students are currently pursuing doctoral degrees in Educational Leadership.

Over the past 40 years AILP alumni have gone on to work at the tribal, state, and national levels and have made significant contributions to the field of Indian education, as well as education at-large.

RoseMary Big
Sincangu Lakota Oyate, Rosebud, South Dakota
RoseMary’s work prior to Penn State University included 7 years of teaching in Tuba City Unified School District. The most recent position was as the lead teacher for an Alternative Education program in the junior high school building (pilot year). Other positions included: Reading Specialist, and Language Arts teacher which incorporated reading, writing, and ELL for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade in mixed grade levels and single grade levels. While teaching at TCJHS, she had also been the girls’ volleyball and softball coach.

Prior to returning to her home town, Tuba City, RoseMary began her career at Salt River Maricopa Indian Community School where she spent 4 years teaching in grades K-1. She also coached girls’ volleyball and basketball for grades 4-6 incorporated through the City of Scottsdale and Red Mountain Boys and Girls Club for community school students. She was eventually hired as the Head volleyball and softball coach for the community’s High School.

She has presented at two national conferences, National Indian Education Association and Arizona State Board Association, as well as within her own district on teaching practices to reach diverse learners in the classroom. She has also participated at the state level in standards articulation, item writing and bias review for reading and writing in the state of Arizona.

RoseMary received her first master’s degree through Arizona State University as an AzTEP fellow in Curriculum & Instruction. Her aspirations and goals included at one time to become a curriculum director. Currently, they range from applying to a Ph. D program to working at the State level in Education as a representative and servant of Indian Education. A more immediate goal is to complete the master’s program at Penn State and move into a principal’s position in order to complete the pay back portion of the American Indian Leadership Program fellowship.

Eryka Charley
Eryka Charley, Navajo, is originally from Coyote Canyon, NM. She comes to Penn State from the University of Denver where she received a Master's in Higher Education and served as the American Indian Student Support Services Coordinator. Prior to the University of Denver, she earned a Bachelor’s degree from Colorado College with a major in Sociology.
Eryka is currently a first year doctoral student in Educational Leadership. Her research interests include college student identity development, collectivist leadership practices, issues in American Indian and rural education, and transformational resistance within American Indian college students. In the future, Eryka hopes to return to higher education and serve as a college administrator to continue promoting access for underprivileged college students.

Bernard Chimoni
Bernard Chimoni, an enrolled member of the A:Shiwi (Zuni) tribe in New Mexico, is a full time graduate student in the Department of Education Policy Studies at The Pennsylvania State University. In Penn State’s College of Education, he is a cohort with the American Indian Leadership Program (AILP), and is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership including principal certification. Prior to attending The Pennsylvania State University, he was a teacher with the Zuni Public School District in Zuni, New Mexico where he served as Zuni Language Curriculum and bilingual team leader, vice president of and committee member of Save The Children organization, and served on advisory council with Zuni’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers. He also taught at a Bureau of Indian Education School in Isleta, New Mexico where he co-directed the national Gear Up after school program, served as Math, Science, and Technology coordinator, served on the technology committee. He graduated from the University of New Mexico with a M. A. and a B. S. degree in elementary education; he has endorsement in language arts, and is certified with Intel’s Teach to the Future Intel Master Teacher. His research interests are on the education of American Indian and Alaskan Native students and the preservation of Indigenous languages and bilingual education. Upon completion of a M. Ed. Degree, he will return to New Mexico to work in an administrative position with the Zuni Public School District in Zuni, New Mexico. Bernard is a fluent speak and writer of his Zuni language; he will continue with his professional goal of pursuing a doctoral degree in linguistics.

Peter Deswood III
Peter Deswood III was a middle school mathematics teacher in Farmington, New Mexico and taught for 8 years. He has taught at the Indian Community School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and on the Navajo Indian Reservation at Chooshgai Community School in Tohatchi, New Mexico. Peter is currently working on a Master’s in Educational Leadership with a Principal Certification at the Pennsylvania State University. He received a Bachelor’s of Science in Education from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and also a Bachelor’s of Arts in Accounting from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado.

While teaching in Farmington and Tohatchi, he served on the math committee as a member and department chair. He also assisted the North Central Association evaluate other BIA funded schools in the Four Corners to receive accreditation. While teaching, he also coached football, girl’s & boy’s basketball, and track & field. Peter is married to Kari and has three beautiful daughters, Jordan, a fifteen year old, Gabriella, a three year old, and Marley, a one year old. He is also a member of the Navajo Nation.

Peter’s goal is to become a principal in a school that serves mostly American Indian students in the Four Corners area. While leading a school, Peter hopes to create a school climate that validates students’ unique backgrounds as important funds of knowledge that can be incorporated into everyday classrooms. In addition, Peter strives to make education equitable to all students so that all students have an equal chance to experience success, whether it occur in the classroom or in extra-curricular activities. Furthermore, Peter desires to become an educational leader that makes decisions that are based on what is in the best interests of students. Most importantly, Peter hopes to become an effective American Indian leader that makes a difference in the community and in students’ lives.

Kari Deswood
Kari Deswood is a member of the Navajo Nation and was a high-school English teacher prior to her relocation to State College, Pennsylvania. She has experience teaching Language Arts, American Literature, World Literature, and Bilingual Education. As an advocate of students participating in extracurricular activities, Kari has been a sponsor for clubs and activities, which extended her experience to coaching positions in cross-country and track & field.

Her prior position was at Farmington High School in Farmington, New Mexico, where she taught primarily high school students. She has a B.A. in English Education from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. She currently is working on her M.Ed. in Educational Leadership at Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania. Kari is married to Peter Deswood III, a member of the American Indian Leadership Program at Penn State University. Between the two they have three beautiful daughters.

Kari aspires to work with students that come from diverse backgrounds, mainly American Indian students. Her goal is to become an administrator that helps her staff understand the complexities (cultural and socioeconomic factors) that American Indian students bring with them into the school community. Kari plans to emphasize a collaborative working relationship between the school and local community so that students’ families have a voice in the education of their children.

Kari’s interested in assisting American Indian students achieve success on standardized test. Her research interests include finding effective research-based strategies for increased American Indian student success and increasing parent/community involvement. She hopes to expand her knowledge so that she is a well-rounded instructional leader. Kari believes with dedication, determination, and effective leadership all educators can help every student become productive members of their respective communities.

Lynda Mary Simiitaq Hadley
Born and raised in the villages of Northwest Alaska, Lynda Hadley is a Kindergarten through Grade 8 teacher, certified by the State of Alaska. She is also a No Child Left Behind (NCLB) highly qualified teacher, certified through the Anchorage School District (ASD). Her most recent teaching position, with ASD, was completed in April of this year. For the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA), she taught Adult Education and earlier in her UAA career, was one of two initial organizers of its new program, Education Talent Search, funded by the U.S.

Department of Education Trio group. Her non-profit program experience includes organizing a new program for autistic children as the In-Home Service Coordinator for REACH, a local service provider. Lynda's rural education experience as a teacher was followed by winning a seat on the Northwest Arctic Borough School Board in Kotzebue, Alaska. Ms. Hadley's political work experience has included the U. S. Senate in Washington, D.C. and Alaska's Legislature.

She is a member of both NAN A and Bering Straits Native corporations, Alaska Native owned entities formed to implement a 1971 aboriginal land claims settlement for the Natives of Alaska. Her mother is Sarah Hadley, an Inupiaq (Eskimo) from the village of Deering, Alaska, where Lynda was born.

Arlene Marozas
I am an enrolled member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa & Chippewa Indians of Michigan. As a first generation “urban Indian,” I grew up on the “Northside” of Chicago, Illinois. However, for the past twenty years, I have lived and worked in New Mexico. I possess dual (both regular and special education) certification from the state of New Mexico. I have taught both regular and special education at the middle and high school levels. My most recent position was as a Clinical Education Specialist at Sequoyah Adolescent Treatment Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. My passion has been working with emotionally challenged youth, especially those who are affected by clinically diagnosed mental disorders, in addition to having special education needs.

As an American Indian Leadership Program Fellow, I plan to earn a M.Ed. and obtain Principal certification while at Penn State University. After graduation, I plan to work as an education administrator either at the local, state or federal level.

Kathleen Sando
Jemez (He mish) Pueblo, New Mexico

Prior to attending Penn State, 2006 – 2007, Kathleen was an employee of the Five Sandoval Indian Pueblos, Inc. in Bernalillo, NM., and was beginning the year as the Head Start Administrator for 3 Head Start programs in 3 pueblo (Native American) communities. Head Start is a federal program which serves children ages 3 – 5 and provides early childhood education with a focus on family involvement. Her career has predominantly been in the Administrative field with various Head Start programs. As a Head Start Administrator she had the opportunity to serve on the National Indian Head Start Directors Association as a board member for Region V.

Upon graduating from the University of New Mexico in 1998 she began a teaching career. Her teaching experience consists of a 3/4th grade combination, and she was a Special Education teacher at the Jemez Valley Public School in New Mexico for 3 years. These years were very rewarding and were inspirational which lead to a different route in education: the administrative field. In the administrative field, she had many opportunities to be a part of the strategic planning process and establishing goals in the schools curriculum, and will continue to be a part of an ongoing process of implementing change in an education system.

Kathleen’s career in education began 12 years ago. Her goal is becoming a team player for a school or a Native American education program that has strengths in native language and cultural traditions. The toughest challenge is finding a balance between maintaining a tribe’s native language, cultural traditions and meeting state standards. She has a determination to be a part of an educational system serving a Native American population in which cultural traditions and native language are struggling to survive in this NCLB era.

Receiving an education at Penn State University has given her a wealth of knowledge which strengthens her vision of bringing to the forefront a tribe’s culture and language as the basis for their children’s education. More importantly, as an educational leader, Kathleen will have the confidence and the knowledge to bring forth guidance to a school alongside other professionals with the same goals and aspirations for their children.

Paulina Whitehat
Diné from northern Arizona
Professional Background: M.Ed., Bilingual & Multicultural Education. Elementary school teacher, K-8 English Language Learner (ELL) teacher, and K-12 Johnson O’Malley (JOM) Home-School Liaison in public education. Instructional Assistant to Adult Basic Education (ABE) learners and English Language Acquisition for Adults (ELAA) learners in the community college system.
Professional Goals and Aspirations: Become a school leader, pursue additional education, and advocate for change and improvement of public education for all children and adults.