About Me

I am an Associate Professor of Curriculum Studies in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, in the College of Education at Purdue University. I also hold courtesy appointments in the School of Engineering Education in the College of Engineering and the Department of American Studies in the College of Liberal Arts. My research forefronts the centrality of Indigenous education within Curriculum Studies through the development and use of Indigenous methodologies to study Indigenous student experiences in educational contexts. I investigate the relationships between Indigenous communities and dominant communities, particularly emphasizing how these relationships influence Indigenous peoples’ political, cultural, and social survival in the United States. My work builds on existing Indigenous theories (e.g. Tribal Critical Race Theory) to create methods that center Indigenous perspectives. By using Indigenous methods to study these relationships in school settings, my research aims to improve the educational outcomes of Indigenous students. The critical importance of improving educational outcomes for Indigenous students has been emphasized in numerous reports at both the K-12 (National Indian Education Study, 2011, 2015) and postsecondary (National Science Foundation, 2017, 2018) levels. My research examines the experiences of Indigenous youth across multiple educational contexts (e.g. in-class experiences, curriculum representation) to increase understandings of Indigenous students’ educational needs and to transform the curriculum to accurately represent Indigenous content.