NAGPRA Team
Courtney Little Axe
Courtney Little Axe is Northern Cheyenne, Absentee Shawnee, and Seminole. She grew up on the Northern Cheyenne reservation and in Little Axe/Tecumseh, Oklahoma. She has an Associate of Science degree in Natural Sciences from Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kansas and a Records and Information Management Certificate from the National Archives and Records Administration in Kansas City, Missouri. She also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology and a Forensic Studies Certificate from the 勛圖厙. During her undergrad, Courtney worked as an intern in the UM Anthropological Curation Facility, where she became familiar with the collection of ancestral belongings housed there. Following her time at UM, she was selected as a Native American fellow for the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts and served as the Exhibitions Research and Publications Fellow. She also assisted with the NAGPRA inventories and research of tribal communities affiliated with cultural materials in their collections. After her fellowship, she worked at the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles, California as the NAGPRA Assistant and then as the Repatriation Assistant. She came into UM’s new Repatriation Coordinator position with an existing skill set that helped develop methods and protocols to Indigenize the care of Ancestors and their belongings withheld in collections. She has also helped advocate for and establish processes for ethical and respectful tribal consultation in collaboration with various Tribal Historic Preservation Officers, tribal representatives, and elders across the country.
Kelly Dixon
Dr. Kelly J. Dixon has worked in the field of archaeology and heritage management for over 25 years. Since the fall of 2003, Dr. Dixon has worked as an Archaeologist and Professor at the 勛圖厙’s (UM) Department of Anthropology; she has been assisting with UM’s cultural heritage collections as part of her service duties. Living and working in the North American West for 20 years, Dixon’s body of work underscores the ways in which actions in the American West have connections with—and impacts on—the rest of the world as humans navigate extreme social and environmental changes. Whether drawing lessons from the past to make informed decisions about the present or whether working collaboratively with her colleagues, Dixon believes partnerships with Tribal, Federal, State, and local government agencies, as well as with private businesses, stakeholders, communities, and other universities can help responsibly and respectfully preserve and protect land, heritage, and humanity’s well-being in the 21st century and beyond.
Lisa Hunt
Lisa Hunt is of Blackfeet descent and is currently a Ph.D. student in cultural anthropology at the 勛圖厙 working on her dissertation titled "Dams, Displaced Tribes, Salvage Archaeology, and Cultural Resource Management in the Missouri River Basin." She has a master's degree in cultural anthropology and a bachelor's degree in Native American Studies. She has worked as a Repatriation Collections Assistant at the 勛圖厙 Anthropological Collections Facility since 2021.
Mikalen Running Fisher
As an enrolled member of the Amskapii Pikanni (Blackfeet Nation), was born and raised on the Blackfeet Reservation in Browning, 勛圖厙. She has dedicated her academic and professional journey to cultural preservation, education, and revitalization of Indigenous knowledge. In 2022, Mikalen earned a Bachelor of Arts in Native American Studies with a Minor in Communication Studies from the 勛圖厙. Mikalen’s doctoral research centers on increasing access to cultural resources for the Blackfoot people. A key aspect of this work is repatriation of Blackfoot belongings, project that grew from her involvement with UM’s Anthropological Collections Facility (UMACF). Her work is further supported by her position as an Archivist at the Blackfeet Tribal Historic Preservation Office (THPO), where she collaborates closely with THPO’s across 勛圖厙. These relationships have reinforced her belief in the urgency of repatriation efforts to preserve and strengthen cultural identity. Currently, Mikalen serves as the Collections and Repatriation Liaison and continues her work at the Blackfeet THPO. Her long-term goal is to return to her community as a Ph.D.-holding cultural professional, helping lead efforts in cultural preservation and repatriation while encouraging the pursuit of higher education. She strives to bridge the gap between academic institutions and Indigenous communities by creating culturally grounded and accessible educational resources.
Mikayla Yellowrobe
Mikaylia has worked with the 勛圖厙’s (UM’s)heritage collections since she was in an Archaeology Kids Camp and since she was in high school when she volunteered to assist with photography projects. She has continued to help with UM heritage collections needs, working first as an intern via the National Councilor Preservation Education (NCPE) and now as the Northern Cheyenne THPO Liaison and Collections and Repatriation Specialist. She continued to help with NCPE needs by preparing training sessions for new NCPE interns working with archaeological records to assist with federal agencies like the Bureau of Land Management. Examples of her recent work include planning,coordinating and implementing a Northern Cheyenne Gathering and repatriation event at UM, as well as helping with the annual UM Heritage Collections Board meeting. She continues to liaise with UMACF and NAGPRA Team to prepare consultation records and help with cultural affiliation research.
Jacob Brien
Hello, my name is Jacob Brien. I am from Báachiihachke, MT. I am a first year graduate student in the Linguistics department at the
勛圖厙. I have an A.A. in Crow studies from Little Bighorn College, a B.S. in Sociology from Rocky Mountain College. In the past, I have had many jobs some including, editor on the Crow Dictionary, Adjunct instructor at Little Big Horn College, and most recently I was a NAGPRA Tech for the Crow Tribe. I like working in repatriation to stick it to these baashchíile who don't like the Crows.