Assistant Professor Nicole Alia Salis Reyes, of the College of Education Department of Educational Administration (EDEA), was selected as the 2020 Outstanding Research Award recipient by NASPA’s (Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education) Indigenous Peoples Knowledge Community (IPKC).

According to Awards Chair Terry Chavis, Salis Reyes’ nomination received tremendous support from the IPKC based on her critical scholarly works that continuously seek to address political questions and epistemological concerns regarding the participation of Indigenous peoples in higher education.

“Receiving this award was a great honor,” Salis Reyes said. “I feel humbled to have been recognized by a community of student affairs practitioners and scholars interested in the well-being of Indigenous peoples in higher education for the work that I have contributed to our field. I always hope that my scholarship will be meaningful and of use to others. This recognition from the NASPA IPKC helps me to know that it is.”

In 2016, Salis Reyes won the Association for the Study of Higher Education’s (ASHE) Bobby Wright Dissertation of the Year award. She was selected for her dissertation research in which she explores how Native – Native Hawaiian, Native American, and Alaska Native – college graduates came to value and make meaning of giving back to their communities.

This recent research award recognizes Salis Reyes’ body of scholarship, rather than a particular paper or project. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, NASPA cancelled their annual meeting where she was to be honored. Instead, she and other award recipients are being recognized on the IPKS National Facebook page.