Gwen Westerman

Gwen Nell Westerman[1] is a Dakota educator, writer and artist. She is a professor at Minnesota State University, Mankato, and the Director of the Native American Literature Symposium.[2] She was appointed by Governor Tim Walz as Poet Laureate of Minnesota in September 2021.[3]

Life and career

Westerman is an enrolled member of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and speaker of the Dakota language.[4] Through her mother, she is also Cherokee and grew up in Kansas.[5] She is Professor of English and Director of the Humanities Program at Minnesota State University, Mankato.[6]

Education

Westerman received a BA and MA in English from Oklahoma State University. She received a PhD in English from the University of Kansas.[citation needed]

Awards

  • 1999 - Native American Inroads. The Loft, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mentor: Diane Glancy.
  • 1999 - Native American Inroads. The Loft, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mentor: Susan Power.
  • 2004 - Fellowship. The Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History. American Indian Programs. Research project: Traditional Dakota beadwork, under the direction of JoAllyn Archambault, PhD.[7]
  • 2012 - Douglas R. Moore Research Award Fellow. Minnesota State University, Mankato.[7]
  • 2012 - Presidential Teaching Scholar. Minnesota State, Mankato.[7]
  • 2013 - Minnesota Book Award—Minnesota Category.[7]
  • 2013 - Leadership in History Award. American Association for State and Local History.[7]
  • 2014 - Hognander Minnesota History Award[8]
  • 2014 - Distinguished Faculty Scholar, Minnesota State University, Mankato.[7]
  • 2015 - Native American Artist in Residence at the Minnesota Historical Society[9]

Publications

Books

  • Westerman, Gwen; White, Bruce (2012). Mni Sota Makoce: The Land of the Dakota. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press. ISBN 978-0873518697.
  • Westerman, Gwen Neil (2013). Follow the Blackbirds. American Indian Studies. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press. ISBN 978-1611860924.

Articles and chapters

  • Westerman, Gwen (2009). "Generosity in Continuance: The Gifts of Simon J. Ortiz". In Brill de Ramirez, Susan Berry; Lucero, Evelina (eds.). Simon J. Ortiz: A Poetic Legacy of Indigenous Continuance. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press. pp. 177–182. ISBN 978-0826339881.
  • Westerman, Gwen (2009). "George Shiras, III". In Cevasco, George A.; Harmond, Richard P. (eds.). Modern American Environmentalists: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 470–472. ISBN 978-0801891526.
  • Westerman, Gwen (September 14, 2009). "Going Back". A View from the Loft. The Loft Literary Center. Retrieved 2015-04-13.
  • Westerman, Gwen (2012). "Sister Lost, Sister Found: Redemption in Louise Erdrich's The Painted Drum and Shadow Tag". In Hafen, P. Jane (ed.). Critical Insights: Louise Erdrich. Ipswich, MA: Salem Press. pp. 245–255. ISBN 978-1429837231.
  • Westerman, Gwen (2013). "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon". In Howe, LeAnne; Markowitz, Harvey; Cummings, Denise (eds.). Seeing Red—Hollywood's Pixeled Skins: American Indians and Film. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press. pp. 25–29. ISBN 978-1611860818.

Poetry

  • "Dakota Odowaŋ". Yellow Medicine Review. 1 (1): 133–134. Spring 2007.
  • "He keya Wo'okiye". Yellow Medicine Review. 1 (1): 135. Spring 2007.
  • "Dakota Odowaŋ". Water-Stone Review. 13: 141–142. 2010.
  • "Wowicak'u/Feed Them". Water-Stone Review. 13: 143. 2010.
  • "Root Words". Natural Bridge. 26: 1. Fall 2011.
  • "Where the Buffalo Roam". Natural Bridge. 26: 2–3. Fall 2011.
  • "Awakening". Natural Bridge. 26: 4. Fall 2011.
  • "Song for the Generations". Water-Stone Review. 15: 148–149. 2012.

Art

  • "Caske's Pardon 2012". Ded Uŋk'uŋpi—We Are Here (Exhibit Catalog). All My Relations Gallery and James J. Hill House Gallery. 2012.
  • "Mitakuye Owas (All My Relations)". Hena Uŋkiksuyapi: In Commemoration of the Dakota Mass Execution of 1862 (Exhibit Catalog). Hillstrom Museum of Art. 2012.

References

  1. ^ "Gwen Nell Westerman Poems". Wisdom Ways. Retrieved 2019-08-13.
  2. ^ "About NALS". MNSU.ecu. The Native American Literature Symposium. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
  3. ^ "Gwen Nell Westerman is the new Minnesota poet laureate". MPR News. 9 September 2021. Retrieved 2021-09-10.
  4. ^ "Gwen Nell Westerman". Poetry Foundation. 2019-08-13. Retrieved 2019-08-13.
  5. ^ Moore, Jane Turpin (December 1, 1969). "Gwen Westerman, Minnesota's new poet laureate, is grounded in Mankato area". Mankato Free Press. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  6. ^ "about". Gwen Westerman. Retrieved 2019-08-13.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Gwen Westerman - Award Winning Faculty". mnsu.edu. College of Arts and Humanities, Minnesota State University, Mankato. 2014. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
  8. ^ Hertzel, Laurie (March 7, 2014). "Hognander History and Kay Sexton awards winners announced". Star-Tribune. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
  9. ^ "Native American Artist-in-Residence: Gwen Westerman". History Education MN. 2017-04-25. Retrieved 2019-08-13.

Further reading

  • Brown, Curt (October 20, 2012). "NONFICTION: "Mni Sota Makoce, The Land of the Dakota," by Gwen Westerman and Bruce White". Star-Tribune. Retrieved March 12, 2012.

External links

  • Official website
  • "Governor Walz, Lieutenant Governor Flanagan Appoint Gwen Nell Westerman as Minnesota Poet Laureate," Gov. official website, September 9, 2021
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