My Story
About Dr. Amanda Cheromiah
Strengthening the collective and individual self-determination of Indigenous Peoples and Communities through education, storytelling, digital media & advocacy.
I am from the village of Paguate, located on the homelands of Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico. I care deeply about giving-back to Indigenous communities .
BIO
Dr. Amanda Cheromiah (Laguna Pueblo)
Executive Director, Center for the Futures of Native Peoples
Dr. Cheromiah is from the Village of Paguate located on the homelands of Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico. Her names are Kah-ow-dthu-ee and Sippun (Inupiaq name meaning "Big Guns") and her clans are shaska sinah hanu (Roadrunner & Turkey People). She is the Granddaughter of six relatives who attended the Carlisle Indian Industrial School: Mary Bailey Seonia (enr. 1885) | Howice Seonia (enr. 1895) | Benjamin Seonia (enr. 1904) | Joseph Ross (enr. 1904) | Charles Brown Analla (enr. 1914) | William Seonia (enr. unknown) | and she honors Lewis Tewanima (enr. 1907). Because of them, she works, lives, heals, feed the spirits, prays and thrives in the heart of the beast -- Carlisle, PA. She believes one of the greatest gifts she has as an educator, mentor, and sister is the ability to build the confidence of People through storytelling, kind words, and digital media. Amanda cares deeply about giving back to her Indigenous Community and transforming spaces through visual narratives and Indigenous-focused scholarship and methodologies. Dr. Cheromiah earned her PHD in higher education from the University of Arizona (Tucson) in 2021. Authenticity is important. Learn more about Dr. Cheromiah at amandacheromiah.com, connect with her on TikTok | Instagram | X | LinkedIn @drcheromiah.
EDUCATION
Ph.D., Higher Education • 2021
Center for the Study of Higher Education, The University of Arizona, Tucson
Dissertation: The Indigenous Revolt in Education: Indigenous Feat – A Scholar’s Pace (347 pages)
Synopsis - Privileging Indigenous-based frameworks of Tribal Critical Race Theory (TribalCrit) (Brayboy, 2005) and the spider web (Dozier, Enos, 2017), the purpose of this body of work is to understand how ten American Indians – students, staff, and faculty – conceptualize their collective and individual self-determination in higher education, and how they used running to navigate the academy (academic institutions). The dissertation is based off Dr. Cheromiah’s original documentary, Indigenous Feat – A Scholar’s Pace available at https://bit.ly/indigenousfeatfilm (65-minutes)
Notable Awards and Honors in Graduate School
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2022 Outstanding Contribution to Indigenous Higher Education Research Award - Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education (NASPA) Indigenous Peoples Knowledge Community
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Spring 2021 University of Arizona College of Education Outstanding Graduate Student Award – The University of Arizona Commencement Speaker
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2020-2021 Outstanding Graduate Service Award – University of Arizona Native American Student Affairs
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Raised over $85,000 in scholarship funding to finish graduate school debt-free
Study Aboard Experiences
February 2020 | Red Star International Tribal Leader Indigenous Water New Zealand Guardianship Exchange – Traveled to New Zealand with Arizona tribal leaders to learn from Māori leaders about water rights, laws, and policies for protecting waters sources in New Zealand.
Reflection: Land and Water Protectors https://bit.ly/nzwaterprotectors (6-minutes)
Summer 2019 | Australia and New Zealand Indigenous Cultural & Educational Exchange Study Abroad – Learned about the educational, cultural, social, and political structures of Aboriginal and Māori people. Co-Created Reflection: Indigenous Brilliance https://bit.ly/indigenousbrilliance (28-minutes)
Summer 2018 | Australia Indigenous Cultural & Educational Exchange Study – Learned about the educational, cultural, social, and political structures of Aboriginal people and communities. Reflection: Out to Country https://bit.ly/studyabroadindigenous (16-minutes)
Master of Arts, Higher Education • 2015
Center for the Study of Higher Education, The University of Arizona, Tucson
Bachelor of Arts, Communications; Minor, American Indian Studies • 2008
The University of Arizona, Tucson
INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING
I actively increase the digital imprint of Indigenous narratives through digital stories. Below are selected videos I have created and a few collaboration projects. I was the director and leading content creator for The SOAR HIGHER video, which showcases the Native Student Outreach Access and Resiliency (SOAR) Indigenous mentoring program at the University of Arizona in Tucson. I served the program in various capacities for over 10 years. The rumor is that the White House would have selected our SOAR HIGHER video submission for Michelle Obama's Near-Peer Mentoring Challenge. Still, the University of Arizona's 2015 graduation commencement conflicted with Mrs. Obama's schedule. So, our video was not chosen as the winner. Mrs. Obama sent us a letter from the White House thanking us for our submission...we felt special! The Indigenous Educators Unite (IEU) Dear Indigenous Students video is a collaboration with Arizona educators. We made this video at the onset of the pandemic to encourage Indigenous students. The remaining videos showcase various experiences I have encountered.
Contact
Alaska
email: archeromiah@alaska.edu
Selected Digital Stories
MENTORING STORYTELLERS
As mentioned, I served in various roles with the Native SOAR program at the University of Arizona. For over eight years, I served as one of the instructors for the three-unit undergraduate service-learning class. From 2014 until 2021, I taught hundreds of college students, especially Indigenous undergraduates, how to share their narratives through digital stories and photography. Now, the Native SOAR YouTube channel has hundreds of stories featuring students' narratives, especially stories from Indigenous storytellers.Below are selected digital stories from previous Native SOAR students I mentored.
Selected Digital Stories
