Janine Pease
Encyclopedia
Janine Pease is an American Indian educator and advocate. She is the founding president of the Little Big Horn College
as well as the past president of the American Indian Higher Education Consortium
and director of the American Indian College Fund
. She was appointed by President Bill Clinton
to the National Advisory Council on Indian Education and the White House Initiative on Tribal Colleges and Universities Advisory Council. She has also served as a trustee of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian
.
Pease (then Janine Windy Boy) was the lead plaintiff in a voting rights litigation against Big Horn County (Windy Boy v. Big Horn County), the result of which was a Billing Federal District Court ruling that overturned a Montana state law which it was determined had discriminated against the voting rights of American Indians. She also served on the Montana Human Rights Commission.
. She was the first woman of Crow lineage to earn a doctorate degree, (from Montana State University
in 1994). She was born on the Colville Indian Reservation
in Washington where both of her parents worked as educators. One of her paternal great-grandfathers was White-Man Runs-Him, one of the Crow scouts who served with George Armstrong Custer.
Pease holds two bachelor's degrees from Central Washington University
. She received her master’s from Montana State University in 1987 and her doctorate in adult and higher education in 1994.
She taught Native American Studies
at Big Bend Community College
. She was also a counselor at the Navajo Community College and Eastern Montana College (now Montana State University). Pease served as the president of the Little Big Horn College from 1982 to 2000. From 2003-2008 she held the position of Vice President for American Indian Affairs at Rocky Mountain College.
Currently she works as the Vice President for Academic Affairs at Fort Peck Community College
in Poplar, Montana.
She is the recipient of several honorary doctorates and was appointed to the Montana Board of Regents of Higher Education in 2006 by Governor Schweitzer. In 2006, Governor Schweitzer appointed her to the Montana Board of Regents.
Little Big Horn College
Little Big Horn College is a Native American tribal college based in Crow Agency, Montana. Little Big Horn College is a two-year, tribally owned community college, serving the people of the Crow Indian Reservation. The college is directed by the Board of Trustees elected by districts within the...
as well as the past president of the American Indian Higher Education Consortium
American Indian Higher Education Consortium
The American Indian Higher Education Consortium was established in 1972, in order to represent the interests of the newly developed tribal colleges, which are controlled and operated by American Indian nations...
and director of the American Indian College Fund
American Indian College Fund
The American Indian College Fund is an nonprofit organization that helps Native American students, providing them with support through scholarships and funding toward higher education...
. She was appointed by President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
to the National Advisory Council on Indian Education and the White House Initiative on Tribal Colleges and Universities Advisory Council. She has also served as a trustee of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian
National Museum of the American Indian
The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum operated under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution that is dedicated to the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of the native Americans of the Western Hemisphere...
.
Pease (then Janine Windy Boy) was the lead plaintiff in a voting rights litigation against Big Horn County (Windy Boy v. Big Horn County), the result of which was a Billing Federal District Court ruling that overturned a Montana state law which it was determined had discriminated against the voting rights of American Indians. She also served on the Montana Human Rights Commission.
Personal life
Pease is member of the Crow Indian tribeCrow Nation
The Crow, also called the Absaroka or Apsáalooke, are a Siouan people of Native Americans who historically lived in the Yellowstone River valley, which extends from present-day Wyoming, through Montana and into North Dakota. They now live on a reservation south of Billings, Montana and in several...
. She was the first woman of Crow lineage to earn a doctorate degree, (from Montana State University
Montana State University - Bozeman
Montana State University – Bozeman is a public university located in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's land-grant university and primary campus in the Montana State University System, which is part of the Montana University System...
in 1994). She was born on the Colville Indian Reservation
Colville Indian Reservation
The Colville Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Washington, inhabited and managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, which is recognized by the United States of America as an American Indian Tribe...
in Washington where both of her parents worked as educators. One of her paternal great-grandfathers was White-Man Runs-Him, one of the Crow scouts who served with George Armstrong Custer.
Pease holds two bachelor's degrees from Central Washington University
Central Washington University
Central Washington University, often abbreviated CWU, is a public university in Ellensburg, Washington in the United States.This location was selected by the state legislature as a consolation prize after Ellensburg lost its bid to be state capital...
. She received her master’s from Montana State University in 1987 and her doctorate in adult and higher education in 1994.
Educator
Pease has worked for the Governor’s Commission on Youth Involvement and in 1975 she served as the Director of the Crow tribe’s Adult and Continuing Education Program. She was part of the Crow Central Education Commission and helped to establish the first Crow Indian educational authority, which provided for the education of tribe members on and off the reservation.She taught Native American Studies
Native American Studies
Native American Studies is an interdisciplinary academic field that examines the history, culture, politics, issues and contemporary experience of Native peoples in North America, or, taking a hemispheric approach, the Americas...
at Big Bend Community College
Big Bend Community College
Big Bend Community College is a two-year college in Moses Lake, Washington. It offers several associate's degrees in academic and vocational fields.- History :...
. She was also a counselor at the Navajo Community College and Eastern Montana College (now Montana State University). Pease served as the president of the Little Big Horn College from 1982 to 2000. From 2003-2008 she held the position of Vice President for American Indian Affairs at Rocky Mountain College.
Currently she works as the Vice President for Academic Affairs at Fort Peck Community College
Fort Peck Community College
Fort Peck Community College is one of seven tribal community colleges in the state of Montana. The college is located on the Fort Peck Assiniboine & Sioux Reservation in the northeast corner of Montana, with its main campus in Poplar....
in Poplar, Montana.
Honors and titles
Pease is the recipient of several prestigious awards and honors including the MacArthur Fellowship and the ACLU Jeanette Rankin Award, as well as being chosen as the National Indian Educator of the Year in 1990. She was also named one of the “One of the 100 Most Influential Montanans of the Century” by the Missoulian Magazine.She is the recipient of several honorary doctorates and was appointed to the Montana Board of Regents of Higher Education in 2006 by Governor Schweitzer. In 2006, Governor Schweitzer appointed her to the Montana Board of Regents.