Tribal College Press release

PRESS RELEASE

November 5, 2001

All Known Press Affiliate

Regents Select Jeffrey L. Hamley As President Of Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College

Jeffrey L. Hamley, Ed. D., has been selected as the president of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College. The Board of Regents voted October 31, 2001, to name Dr. Hamley to the position. The selection came after a national search that considered a number of well-qualified candidates.

"With his wide expertise on a range of issues affecting tribal colleges and higher education generally, Dr. Hamley's leadership will significantly enhance the capability of the college to provide quality higher education to the Saginaw tribal community." Said Angeline Boulley-Matson, Chairperson of the Board of Regents. "Dr. Hamley faces a number of key challenges in establishing the administrative and academic infrastructure of the college in the next several years, and nurturing the college beyond the development stage. The Board of Regents is confident that we have selected the individual with the appropriate combination of academic training, professional experience, leadership skills, and personal attributes to meet the challenges."

Dr. Hamley formerly was Director of Policy Analysis and Research at the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC), and advocacy organization that represents tribal colleges and universities before Congress and federal agencies. In addition to his experience at AIHEC, he has worked at two of the nation's 32 tribal colleges and universities. He served as Dean of the Center for Arts and Cultural Studies at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Institute is the premier training ground of Native artists in the country. At Northwest Indian College, in Bellingham, Washington, he served as Dean for Extension Services. Extension Services sponsored a range of academic programming that served Native communities throughout the state and comprised over half the college's enrollment. A unique feature of Extension programming was its focus on Native cultural studies. A professional interest of Dr. Hamley is teacher preparation. At Northwest Indian College, he also served as Director of Native Teacher Preparation Program, a new initiative designed to address the shortage of Native teachers in the state. In addition, Dr. Hamley has served as Director of Graduate Programs in Education at Antioch University Seattle, a program that dealt with teacher education in urban settings, including the plight of minority students. As Director of the Harvard Native American Program over four years, he sponsored a range of programming to serve the needs of the American Indian student population and the larger Harvard University community, including programming focusing on Native American arts and culture.

Coinciding with his administrative appointment at Harvard, Dr. Hamley held a faculty appointment at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where his teaching focused on Native American education. In addition, Dr. Hamley has taught at Walden University and as visiting professor at Washington State University.

Dr. Hamley earned a doctorate and master's degree from Harvard University. He also holds a master's degree from Western Washington University, where he earned his baccalaureate degree. He is an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Chippewa Tribe of North Dakota.

"I am pleased to have been selected and look forward to making a contribution to the college and the tribal community," stated Dr. Hamley. "The Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College holds great potential to become a valuable asset to the Tribal community and the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe. Other tribal colleges in the nation have demonstrated the value of a tribal college for the varied benefits they bring to their respective communities and tribes. Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College holds the same potential. We face many challenges, but the benefits will be well worth the effort."

Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College is a nonprofit, educational organization established by the 1998 resolution of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Council. The college's mission is to address the academic, technical, and professional education and training needs of the Saginaw Chippewa community.

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