Deana Dartt

Deana Dartt, PhD (Director) is Coastal Band, Chumash and Mestiza, descending from the indigenous people of the Californias. Her scholarly and professional work strives to address the incongruities between public understanding, representation and true acknowledgement of Native peoples, their cultures, histories and contemporary lives. She earned her MA and PhD from the University of Oregon and has held curatorial positions at the Burke Museum of Natural and Cultural History and the Portland Art Museum as well as teaching appointments at the University of Oregon, University of Washington, and Northwest Indian College. Her book manuscript titled, “Subverting the Master Narrative: Museums, Power and Native Life in California” is currently in prep. Deana serves on the boards of the University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History Advisory Council and the Native Coast Action Network, as well as the non-profit organization she recently established, the Live Oak Center for Applied Decolonization (LOCAD).