Vivian Mork ³Ûé¾±±ô°ì’ honored as 2022 Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley Scholar
Vivian ³Ûé¾±±ô°ì Mork receives the AOK Scholar Award from Sean AsikÅ‚uk Topkok in Sitka on April 16.
The 2022 Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley Scholar Award has been awarded to Vivian Mork ³Ûé¾±±ô°ì’. The Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley Scholar Award is presented annually to recognize and encourage Indigenous scholars who have made exemplary contributions to our understanding of Indigenous knowledge systems and Native ways of knowing in Alaska.
³Ûé¾±±ô°ì’ is an alumna of the master's of arts in cross-cultural studies program at the 51·çÁ÷¹ÙÍø, where she specialized in Indigenous knowledge systems as a student of Kawagley.
As a teacher, Kawagley encouraged ³Ûé¾±±ô°ì’ to pursue her dreams as an independent multi-disciplinary scholar and artist. After Kawagley passed in 2011, she continued his legacy of scholarly work and uplifting Indigenous knowledge.
³Ûé¾±±ô°ì’ co-founded Planet Alaska, a cross-cultural Facebook page dedicated to disseminating Indigenous news and topics, environmental issues, Indigenous language revitalization, and showcasing Alaskan writers and artists. Planet Alaska is dedicated to Kawagley.
In recognition of Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley's contribution to articulating the significance of Indigenous knowledge systems and ways of acknowledging the world views in the contemporary world, the 51·çÁ÷¹ÙÍø established the Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley Scholar Award in his honor.
Kawagley was a Yupik scholar who served 25 years as faculty at 51·çÁ÷¹ÙÍø. Along with Ray Barnhardt, he helped create the Center for Cross-Cultural Studies at 51·çÁ÷¹ÙÍø.