Ernestine Berry on Seeking the History of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokees with Guest Co-Host Evelyn Castro Cox

11/15/22 • 34 min

Ernestine Berry shares parts of her journey seeking the history of her people, the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokees, and on becoming the founding Director of the UKB John Hair Cultural Center and Museum (JHCCM). Ernestine was pivotal in the establishment of the JHCCM in 2011, which is dedicated to sharing Keetoowah culture and history with the Keetoowah community and the public. She earned a master’s degree in education administration from Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and a master’s degree in museum studies from the University of Oklahoma. Berry focuses on researching and sharing tribal history and culture, growing the tribal archives, and helping revitalize the Keetoowah language.
On this episode we are also joined by guest co-host, Evelyn Castro Cox. Evelyn is CHamoru (also known as Chamorro), born on the beautiful island of Guåhan (Guam – island territory of the United States) and now lives in Oklahoma. You can learn more about her at NativeCirclesPodcast.com.
Additional Resources:
John Hair Cultural Center and Museum - https://www.ukb-nsn.gov/john-hair-cultural-center-museumNative Nations Center at University of Oklahoma - https://www.ou.edu/nativenationscenter

THPO with Sheila Bird (Podcast) - https://www.buzzsprout.com/1922460

THPO with Sheila Bird (Podcast) - https://www.buzzsprout.com/1922460

Previous Episode

Teagan Dreyer on Native Identity and Self-Determination within Reclaimed Boarding Schools

Teagan Dreyer shares with us her personal experiences and research of Native identity and self-determination within reclaimed boarding schools.
Teagan is a citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma in her second year of the History PhD program at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma. She studies the experiences of Native American students in federal and tribally-run boarding schools post-World War II. In her research Teagan has focused on the experiences of students in Oklahoma but is also concerned with schools around the country. This research has led Teagan to study the implications of changing federal policies on boarding schools and tribal self-determination through education.
Additional Resources:
Chilocco Indian School History Project through Oklahoma State University - https://chilocco.library.okstate.edu/history
Graphic novel on Chilocco Indian School - https://chilocco.library.okstate.edu/graphic-novel
Chilocco Indian School Documentary - https://chilocco.library.okstate.edu/documentary
National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition - https://boardingschoolhealing.org/
Carlisle Indian School Project - https://carlisleindianschoolproject.com/
Returning Home: Diné Creative Works from the Intermountain Indian School co-authored by Farina King, Michael P. Taylor, and James R. Swensen - https://uapress.arizona.edu/book/returning-home

Next Episode

Crystal Lepscier speaks on Racial Battle Fatigue and Healing Paths

Crystal Lepscier talks about how the history of education and racism tied to historically government sanctioned assimilation and similar genocidal practices ties into our traumas and experiences within the institution that is 'school.' This is profound when we think about Racial Battle Fatigue. This term explains the physiological and psychological harm that is a result of long term microaggressions, racism, and intergenerational trauma. This term carries a weight that, when confronted, has the potential to also help us open the doors to understanding and healing, which sets us on a better path to our human selves.
Lepscier is an enrolled citizen of the Little Shell Chippewa Tribe and a first line descendant of Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee communities. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art and a Master of Science in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis (ELPA) from the University of Wisconsin - Madison. She currently works at the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay (UWGB) as the First Nations Student Success Coordinator, supporting all Indigenous students at the institution. Lepscier recently completed her Ed.D. in the First Nations Education Doctorate (FNED) program at UWGB, where she focused her dissertation work on combating Racial Battle Fatigue in the Indigenous student population in higher education.
Learn more about the First Nations Education Ed.D. at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

See also Dan Ninham, “‘Learning is a Lifelong Journey’: Four Indigenous Educators in Wisconsin are the first in the nation with a new doctorate in First Nations Education,” Indian Country Today, July 12, 2022.
Frank Vaisvilas, “The first doctors of Indigenous education have graduated from UW-Green Bay. Here’s what they plan to do next,” Green Bay Press-Gazette, May 24, 2022.