Yees Ku Oo performs at AFN’s Community Reception at Sealaska Corporation
The Alaska Federation of Natives honored longtime educators Gordon L. Pullar and Miranda Wright during a recent community reception hosted by the Sealaska Corporation in Juneau. Pullar, Kodiak Island Sugpiaq, is a UAF Associate Professor who was instrumental in the design and implementation of UAF’s Rural Development MA program, teaching classes on indigenous issues such as identity land claims, leadership and organization management. Wright, Koyukon Athabascan, is an Associate Professor and Director of the Department of Alaska Native Studies and Rural Development (DANSRD) at UAF. Both are soon to retire from teaching.
The Juneau dance group Yees Ku Oo performed several wonderful songs. The community reception was deliciously catered by the Alaska Native Sisterhood Glacier Valley Camp 70.
Gordon L. Pullar, PhD
Pullar serves on the Tangirnaq Native Village Tribal Council and the Alutiiq Museum Board. He is past President and CEO of the Kodiak Area Native Association and past chairman of the Koniag Education Foundation. As past member of the AFN Board, Pullar served on the legislative committee during the key years of the ANCSA 1991 Amendments. He holds a PhD in Organizational Anthropology and a Master of Public Administration Degree. He was the first recipient of he Anayuquq Oscar Kawagley Educators Award in 2013.
Professor Miranda Wright
Miranda Wright, from Nulato, holds an MA in Cultural Anthropology and is in pursuit of a PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies. She currently serves as a member of the Doyon, Ltd. Board of Directors. A private business owner for many years, Wright served on numerous boards and committees focused on economic development and Native education.
Nancy Barnes leads the dance group Yees Ku Oo.