Daphne Littlebear is from the Tamaya (enrolled in Santa Ana Pueblo), Yuchi, Mvskoke, and Shawnee Nations. She received her PhD in Justice Studies at Arizona State University's School of Social Transformation. Her dissertation is titled, Intergenerational Intersections of Teaching and Learning in Santa Ana Pueblo. 

Daphne is an interdisciplinary Pueblo scholar with research interests in Indigenous education and policy, Indigenous evaluation, Indigenous community building, data sovereignty, and Tribal governance.

Academic Background

She is a proud alumnus of Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, a Tribal College and University (TCU), where she earned her Associate’s Degree, beginning her academic journey. As a first-generation college graduate, she holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology and Native American Studies and a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of New Mexico.

Leadership Background

With over 15 years of experience in Indigenous education, she has collaborated with Tribal education departments, school districts, state governments, and nonprofit organizations, leading research initiatives in the government and nonprofit sectors.

Her past roles include serving as the National Indian Education Association's (NIEA) research and Evaluation manager, the American Indian Higher Education Consortium's (AIHEC) research director, and the New Mexico Public Education Department's Indian Education Division's education administrator.

Additionally, Daphne served on the Board of Directors for NIEA before her employment, advocating for educational sovereignty at a national level.

Awards

She completed the Tribal Data Fellows Program at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center and joined the NM Indigenous Evaluators Network. She was also awarded a fellowship through the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Community Leadership Network to support transformational change toward a more equitable society.