Neilga Koogei Taija Rvels is the director of Goldbelt Heritage Foundation and board member of Katlian Collective. She is a recent mother and active in language work and a member of Eagle Raven Dancers.
Heather Powell Mills
Heather Powell Mills is a language advocate working for Goldbelt Heritage Foundation and board member of Katlian Collective. When she isn’t working on language, she is active in her community of Huna and can be found drumming, singing, and traveling with her friend and grandpa, Herman Davis.
Forest Haven
Forest Haven is a Tsimshian from Metlakatla, Alaska, and has her PhD in cultural anthropology. She is a board member on Katlian Collective. She is an avid fisher and berry picker/harvester.
Jerrick Hope-Lang
Jerrick Hope-Lang is a cultural preservationist that is trying to preserve and also create 21st century clan house revival in the Sitka Indian Village. He is a graduate of Institute of American Indian Arts in museum studies, and the 2026-2027 Henry Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellow.
Miranda Bell
Miranda Bell is the Culture and Arts Manager at the Goldbelt Heritage Foundation. She brings a strong background in cultural heritage, having worked across museums, galleries, and Indigenous-focused organizations to support artists and preserve traditional knowledge. Her work emphasizes collaboration with Elders, culture bearers, and youth, ensuring that carving and arts projects are both educational and deeply rooted in community. …
Melody Leask
Melody Leask is a Ts’msyen Elder from Metlakatla who harvests/gathers traditional foods from the land and the ocean. Her parents would say “we aren’t just harvesting food; we are harvesting identity.” She spends precious time with her grandchildren while keeping traditions alive. She is a storyteller, a keeper of the flame, who encourages youth to respect their ancestors.
Misty Holler
Misty Holler is a fourth-generation Alaskan from Wasilla with degrees in education and art from the University of Alaska Anchorage and a Master in Learning Technologies from Western Oregon University. With 28 years in the Mat-Su Borough School District, she brings deep classroom expertise and currently teaches art at Wasilla High School. An accomplished mosaic artist with work in public …
Dr. Staci Block
Dr. Staci Block, Ed.D. (Cherokee), brings extensive experience with authoring Native American Studies curriculum development, designing equity-focused professional learning on culturally and linguistically responsive instruction, leading nationally recognized statewide digital equity innovation projects, and overseeing grant management. She directs and implements state and federal Native education grants, designs equity-focused professional learning on culturally and linguistically responsive instruction, and leads a …
Stacey Skan
Stacey Skan, M.S., M.Ed. is an educational leadership consultant whose work applies organizational management principles to diagnose how hierarchical governance structures create systemic bottlenecks in K-12 education. Her background includes managing strategic initiatives at the Native American Language Resource Center, advising on culturally responsive leadership and teacher pathways across Oregon, and directing CTE programs in tribal school settings. With graduate …
Teresa Dl’a Gwa T’awaa Varnell
Teresa Dl’a Gwa T’awaa Varnell is a teacher and cultural coordinator for the Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District. She received her bachelor’s degree in education at the University of Alaska Southeast after attending Haskell Indian Nations University and is a graduate of the PITAAS teacher preparation program. She is the granddaughter of Haida master weaver Delores Churchill, and Haida values …