Elizabeth Woody facts for kids

Elizabeth Woody (born in 1959) is a talented American artist, writer, and teacher. She is from the Navajo, Warm Springs, Wasco, and Yakama tribes. In March 2016, she made history. She became the first Native American to be named the official poet laureate of Oregon by Governor Kate Brown. This means she was recognized as a very important poet for the state.

About Elizabeth Woody

Elizabeth Woody was born in Ganado, Arizona, in 1959. Her family history is very rich. She belongs to the Tódích'íinii (Bitter Water clan) from her mother's side. Her maternal grandmother was from the Milee-thlama (People of the Hot Springs) and Wyampum peoples. Her maternal grandfather's family were the Chinook peoples from the middle Columbia River area.

Elizabeth studied at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, from 1980 to 1983. She then earned a bachelor's degree in humanities from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. Later, in 2012, she received a Master of Public Administration Degree from Portland State University in Portland, Oregon.

She is a founding member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs in Oregon. This shows her strong connection to her community.

Elizabeth Woody's Career

Elizabeth Woody has had a busy and important career. She is known as a poet, artist, and educator.

As a Writer and Teacher

In 1992, Elizabeth was invited to a special festival for Native Writers called "Returning the Gift." She was also a featured poet at the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival. Her poetry was even included in a well-known journal called Ploughshares in 1994.

From 1994 to 1996, Woody taught creative writing at the Institute of American Indian Arts. She has also led many workshops and given talks across the country. She has worked with young writers, including high school students, helping them develop their skills. She has taught at various places like the Telluride Native Writer's Forum and the Flight of the Mind Writing Workshops for Women.

As an Artist

Elizabeth Woody's art has been shown in many places. Her work has been part of exhibitions that traveled across the country. One exhibition was called "Within the Circle of the Rim: Nations Gathering on Common Ground." She also showed her art in "Submuloc Wohs/Columbus Show" and "For the Seventh Generation: Native American Artists Counter the Quincentenary."

In Oregon, Elizabeth helped start the Northwest Native American Writers Association. She also learned traditional basket weaving as an apprentice. This shows her dedication to preserving Native American arts. She has also helped choose artists for awards and fellowships.

Community and Leadership Roles

Elizabeth Woody has served on many important boards and councils. She was a board member for Soapstone, Inc., which is a retreat for women writers. She also helped create the Native Arts and Cultures Foundation. This foundation supports Native American artists and cultural projects.

She advised on a conference called "Indigenous Ways of Knowing" at Lewis and Clark College. She also helped with a study for the Ford Foundation about a national fund for Native American arts. In 2005, she joined a committee for the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians. She also advises the Evergreen State College Native Arts Council, which hosts a Native American Arts Fair.

From 2012, she worked as the Director of the Indigenous Leadership Program at Ecotrust, an environmental organization. She helped develop this program for seven years. Later, she worked as a K-12 Program Coordinator at the National Science Foundation's Center for Coastal Margin Observation and Prediction. Currently, she is a program officer at the Meyer Memorial Trust in Portland, Oregon.

Awards and Recognition

Elizabeth Woody has received many awards for her work:

• In 1990, she won an American Book Award for her book Hand into Stone. This book was later republished as Seven Hands Seven Hearts.
• In 1993, she received a Medicine Pathways for the Future Fellowship.
• She won the William Stafford Memorial Award for Poetry.
• In 1995, her book Luminaries of the Humble was a finalist for the Oregon Book Awards in poetry.
• She received a Brandywine Visiting Artist Fellowship in 1986.
• In 1997, she was awarded a J.T. Stewart Award and Fellowship from Hedgebrook, a retreat for women writers.
• In May 1997, she participated in a residency in San Francisco, California.
• In April 2016, she was named the Poet Laureate of Oregon for two years.

Books by Elizabeth Woody

Elizabeth Woody has written and contributed to many books.

Poetry Books

• Luminaries of the Humble, published by University of Arizona Press.
• Seven Hands Seven Hearts, published by Eighth Mountain Press.
• Hand into Stone: Poems, published by Contact II Publications.
• Old Shirts & New Skins: Elizabeth illustrated this book of poems by Sherman Alexie.

Books She Contributed To (Anthologies)

Elizabeth Woody's writings have appeared in many collections, including:

• Renewing Salmon Nation's Food Traditions (2006)
• River of Memory: The Everlasting Columbia
• A Song to the Creator: Traditional Arts of Native American Women of the Plateau
• Oregon Salmon: Essay on the State of the Fish at the Turn of the Millennium (2001)
• Salmon Nation (1999)
• When the Rain Sings: Poems by Young Native Americans
• Dreaming the Dawn: Conversations With Native Artists and Activists
• First Fish, First People: Salmon Tales of the North Pacific
• Speaking for the Generations: Native Writers on Writing
• Intimate Nature: The Bond Between Women and Animals
• Earth, Wind, and Fire: Harry Fonseca
• Native American Art in the Twentieth Century: Makers, Meanings, Histories
• The Writer's Journal: 40 Contemporary Authors and Their Journals
• Reinventing the Enemy's Language: Contemporary Native Women's Writing of North America
• Durable Breath: Contemporary Native American Poetry
• A Gathering of Spirit: A Collection by North American Indian Women
• Home Places: Contemporary Native American Writing from Sun Tracks
• Dancing on the Rim of the World : An Anthology of Contemporary Northwest Native American Writing
• Returning the Gift: Poetry and Prose from the First North American Native Writers' Festival
• The World begins Here: Oregon Short Fiction
• Varieties of Hope: An Anthology of Oregon Prose
• From Here We Speak: An Anthology of Oregon Poetry
• The Stories We Tell: An Anthology of Oregon Folk Literature
• A Circle of Nations: Voices and Visions of American Indians
• We, the human beings: 27 contemporary native American artists
• Talking Leaves: Contemporary Native American Short Stories
• The Clouds Threw This Light
• Songs from This Earth on Turtle's Back: An Anthology of Poetry by American Indian Writers

Interviews and Essays About Her Work

• The Nature of Native American Poetry by Norma C. Wilson.
• Here First by Brian Swann and Arnold Krupat.
• "Contrary Iconography" by Jackson Rushing in New Art Examiner.
• "The Earth is Richer for this Voice", an interview by Kim Caldwell in Raven's Chronicles.

Biographical Information About Elizabeth Woody

You can find more information about Elizabeth Woody in these books:

• Notable Native Americans
• The Biographical Directory of Native American Painters
• St. James Guide to Native North American Artists
• Contemporary Authors: A Bio-Bibliographical Guide to Current Writers in Fiction, General Nonfiction, Poetry, Journalism, Drama, Motion Pictures, Television, Volume 135.

Videos Featuring Elizabeth Woody

• Salmon: Why Bother?, from Sea Grant.
• Faithful to Continuance, from Mimbres Fever Productions.

Her Work in Other Languages

Elizabeth Woody's work has also been translated into other languages:

• Les Cahiers- de poesie recontre, 25 special, La poesie Amerindienne, published in France in May 1989.
• Elenco Racconti Raccolta Scrittrici Indianoamericane, published in Italy.