Oscar Kawagley was born in Mamterileg now known as Bethel, Alaska. Oscar's parents died when he was only two years old, from that point on he was raised by his grandmother. Being raised by his grandmother led to him being raised in traditional tribal ways, along with making his first language Yup'ik. This is because his grandmother did not speak any English. During Oscar's grandmother earlier life her parents did not allow her to go to school and get a formal education, they claimed it would make her dumb. However, his grandmother encouraged Oscar to get an education and supported him along the way. Oscar believed that having his grandmother raise him helped set him up for success because he was used to dealing with two different worlds and cultures.
Education
Oscar was reportedly the first Yup'ik native to graduate from high school in Bethel. After high school he joined the U.S. Army Medical Service Corps where he later became a lieutenant. Oscar also received bachelor's degree in education form the University of Alaska, Fairbanks in 1958. Additionally he received a PhD in social and educational studies from the University of British Columbia.
Career
Dr. Kawagley worked as an Associate of Education at the University of Alaska FairbanksCollege of Liberal Arts for more than 25 years. "Over the course of a prolific career, he explored how the Yup'ik concepts he learned as a boy on the tundra could work in concert with western education and he became a pioneer in the field of indigenous knowledge, not just in Alaska but in the academic world at large. "He has been executive director of several nonprofit corporations; President of ESCA Corporation, an earth science and remote sensing consulting company; President of Calista Corporation, a native region corporation; project director of the Indian Education Act Program, Anchorage Borough School District; school teacher; research assistant, Mental Health Unit, Alaska Native Medical Center; and research assistant, Chemistry and Biology Department, Arctic Health Research Center." He also wrote a book in 1995, A Yupiaq Worldview: a Pathway to Ecology and Spirit, which was an attempt to reconcile indigenous and Western worldviews from an indigenous perspective and was an important contribution to the field of ethnoecology. In the book he developed the concept of "indigenous methodology", explaining how western science can benefit from native ways of understanding and vice versa. Oscar was also well known for his efforts to improve the quality of education for Alaska Native Children. Due to his efforts, he received many awards which consisted of " National Indian Education AssociationLifetime Achievement Award, the American Educational Research Association Outstanding Scholarship Award, the Governor’s Award for Arts and Humanities, the Alaska Secondary School Principal’s Association Distinguished Service Award, and the Association of Village Council Presidents Award for his many years of service to the people of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta". Oscar was well known in rural communities and looked highly upon in the field of education in rural communities. Oscar also did some acting. He had a major role in the independent 1991 film Salmonberries, starring k.d. lang. He also appeared in the television showNorthern Exposure and contributed his voice to the elderly Denahi in the 2003 Disney film, Brother Bear.
Death
He died of cancer in Fairbanks, Alaska, in 2011 at the age of 76. His ashes were scattered after his cremation.
