Karletta Chief Receives Distinguished Outreach Faculty Award
May 10, 2021
Congratulations to Dr. Karletta Chief (Diné) on receiving the University Distinguished Outreach Faculty Award for 2021! This comes on the heels of the American Geophysical Union Ambassador Award granted to Dr. Chief in December 2020. The University Distinguished Outreach Faculty Award recognizes faculty who demonstrate outstanding commitment to outreach for the common good of the state and the nation. It is the highest honor awarded in this category at the University of Arizona (UArizona).
“It is a great honor to receive this distinguished award, and [I am] so humbled by this honor! Many thanks to my colleagues for nominating me and for all the time in putting the nomination packet together. I would like to acknowledge all my collaborators and students who also contributed greatly towards nurturing equitable partnerships with tribes, tribal colleges and mentoring and training Indigenous students. Without them, I would not be able to do this work. I am also very proud to be part of the ENVS department and to have such supportive and collegial colleagues! I am definitely grateful for the mentoring I received from Sharon Megdal, Paloma Beamer, Raina Maier, Jeannie McLain, Mike Crimmins and many others along the way. I am very grateful for the recognition by the University of Arizona and even more dedicated to continuing to contribute to the land grant mission!”
Dr. Chief was nominated by colleagues in the Department of Environmental Science (ENVS) and the Arizona Institutes for Resilience with the support from colleagues across UArizona. The nomination extolled her outreach work both inside and outside the settings of academia, highlighting Dr. Chief’s “brilliant approach to innovation by developing and executing community-driven Indigenous-centered water outreach programs.”
ENVS students, staff, and faculty congratulate Dr. Chief on this accomplishment!