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| Demmert |
BELLINGHAM – Western Washington University Education Professor William Demmert has been named the 2009 recipient of the Mike Charleston Award for Distinguished Contributions to Research in Indigenous Education.
The award, by the American Educational Research Association (AERA), recognizes a member for distinguished research, professional practice, and service that advance public understanding of the education of Indigenous peoples.
The award is presented to an individual whose professional career has been devoted in substantial part to the study of Indigenous education, and who has significantly advanced the field through extraordinary leadership through scholarship, professional practice, and/or service to Indigenous communities. Demmert will accept the award at the AERA’s annual meeting April 13-17 in San Diego.
Of Oglalla Sioux and Tlingit heritage, Demmert received his doctorate in education from Harvard in 1973. While attending the university, he worked in the U.S. Senate for U.S. Senators Ted Kennedy and Walter Mondale on the original Indian Education Act. Over his career, Demmert has made extensive contributions in the areas of higher education, research and policy, advancing public understanding of issues related to Indigenous education. Among his many roles, he was one of the original founders of the National Indian Education Association; served as the first U.S. Deputy Commissioner of Education for the U.S. Office of Indian Education, in the Department of Health, Education and Welfare; served as the director of Education for the Bureau of Indian Affairs; held the position of Commissioner of Education for the State of Alaska; and served as a member of Clinton/Gore Council of Education Advisors, and member of the President-elect Transition Team.
Demmert is currently working with the Northwest Region Educational Laboratory, the Kamehameha Schools, the Center for Research on Education, Diversity and Excellence, and the Haskens Institute, along with a consortium of seven schools serving Native American students on research which address the influences of Native language and cultural education programs on improved academic performance.
The American Educational Research Association (AERA), founded in 1916, is concerned with improving the educational process by encouraging scholarly inquiry related to education and evaluation and by promoting the dissemination and practical application of research results. Its more than 26,000 members are educators; administrators; directors of research; persons working with testing or evaluation in federal, state and local agencies; counselors; evaluators; graduate students; and behavioral scientists. For more information, see AERA.
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