Experience
For present day activities with Native American Heritage Programs please go to the Presenters page, for college work click University work.
During my tenure at the Lenni Lenape Historical Society / Museum of Indian Culture, (1978-2002)....
I was instrumental in building the Society into an all-volunteer organization described in a 2000 assessment funded by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts as "a remarkable institution" that "offers rich and diverse programs, a host of activities, and resources for learning that reflect the best tradition of museum educational efforts." As a founder and the sole administrator and primary educator of the Lenni Lenape Historical Society / Museum of Indian Culture,
I developed….
Regionally-unique educational and cultural programs, exhibits, and events attended by 185,000 visitors.
High-impact hands-on, interactive educational experiences that helped over 32,000 school children meet PA Academic Standards for History and Arts / Humanities.
A Speakers' Bureau presenting 150-175 offsite programs and/or exhibits annually at schools, libraries, other organizations, and at well-attended public events.
The Native Treasures outreach program featuring a series of traveling learning boxes that take Native American technology and the history, lifeways, arts and crafts, games, dolls, etc. of various Native American groups into schools.
The most comprehensive Native American-centered library/resource center in PA.
I have been recognized nationally and internationally for my pioneering
work as a Native American cultural educator,
and I have....
Served on panels at conferences sponsored by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and the Smithsonian Institution's Middle Atlantic Association of Museums, and was a representative to the 9th European Conference on Indian Questions in Trondheim, Norway.
Consulted with organizations in both the United States and in Europe, where I offers cultural heritage and environmental presentations and workshops in England, Scotland, Germany, Sweden, and Norway, and I am a Cultural Advisor for the International North American Indian Association in the United Kingdom.
Speaker for Pennsylvania Humanities Council “Commonwealth Speakers Bureau”, (2004-2005), Consultant for PHC, (2006-2007)
Presented customized lectures and programs at universities in the US and
abroad:
Cedar Crest College
Kutztown University
Lehigh University
Moravian College
Muhlenberg College
Temple University, Philadelphia
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Goettingen University, Germany
Glasgow University, Scotland
Trondheim University, Norway
Authored articles for U.S. and European newspapers and magazines such as Instructor (U.S.) and The Turtle Islander (UK).
Been interviewed by National Public Radio, USA Today, and the BBC.
Selected awards, honors and leadership training I have received include ...
President's Volunteer Action Award Citation (1985)
Jefferson Award from KYW-TV3 (1987)
Allentown Human Relations Commission Award (1989)
Smithsonian Institution Award for Museum Leadership (1 of 20 selected from a field of 200 for a two-week leadership training program in Washington, D. C.) (1991)
U.S. Department of the Interior scholarship to attend two-week program on location in Arizona on "Archeology and Ethnography Collections Care and Maintenance" (1 of 20 selected from a field of 500) (1991)
Smithsonian Institution scholarship to attend the one-week "Exhibits for Small Tribal Museums" workshop in Oklahoma (1994)
Yakima Nation scholarships to attend the American Association of State & Local Historical Societies/Native American Initiative Conferences in Colorado (1997) and California (1998)
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts scholarship to attend Native American Arts Association Conference in California (1998)
National Trust for Historic Preservation Conference scholarship to attend workshops in Washington, DC (1999)
PA Federation of Museums and Historical Societies Conference scholarship in State College (2000)
Smithsonian Institution scholarship to attend the one-week workshop on "Exhibitions and Research: Story and Substance" in Washington, DC (2000)
National Museum of the American Indian scholarship to attend the one-week "Preservation and Collection Methods" workshop in California (2002)
"Tribal Archives, Libraries and Museums: Preserving Our Languages, Memory and Lifeways" scholarship to attend conference in Arizona (2002)
Listing in ….
International Leaders in Achievement, 1990, 1991, 1992 Editions and Who's Who In International Women Leaders, 1990, 1991, 1992 Editions (International Biographical Center: London, England)
Reference Encyclopedia of the American Indian, 1990-1991, 1992-1993, 1994-1995, 2006-7 Editions (Todd Publications: Scottsdale, Arizona).
Resource for Newcastle on Tyne - Schools and Communities: The Enviro Schools Team 2001-2007 (Britain), with links and listed in school resource manual, page 12.