The AISES Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Dr. Jani Ingram is the winner of the 2024 Ely S. Parker Award, the organization’s highest honor. Dr. Ingram is a Regents’ Professor at Northern Arizona University (NAU), where she serves as the Dr. Don Gilbert Endowed Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Ingram says,
“I am very honored to receive the Ely S. Parker Award this year from AISES. It is amazing to be this year’s honoree and in the company of so many incredible award winners from the past. I am blessed to work with so many Native American colleagues, staff, students, and most of all, community members on projects and programs that have impact to our people. I am very appreciative of the support that AISES provides to me and so many others as researchers, teachers, students, and communities.”
“Dr. Jani Ingram embodies the leadership and mentorship qualities that the Ely S. Parker award seeks to honor,” says Gary Burnette, a member of the Cheroenhaka Nottoway tribe and chair of the AISES Board of Directors. “Her illustrious career and dedication to Indigenous people, particularly in areas of STEM and health is outstanding. Her passion in mentoring, commitment to excellence in teaching, and devotion to supporting the Indigenous STEM movement while fostering a diverse and inclusive environment is a hallmark of her leadership and impact. We could not be more pleased to award Dr. Ingram AISES highest honor.”
Originally from Kingman, Ariz., Dr. Ingram is a citizen of the Navajo Nation born for the Náneesht’ézhi clan and for the Kin ł ichii’nii clan. She began her academic journey with an associate of arts degree from Yavapai College, a bachelor of science from New Mexico State University, and a PhD from the University of Arizona. Her professional career includes 12 years as a staff scientist at the Idaho National Laboratory prior to joining NAU in 2002.
Dr. Ingram’s work is driven by a deep commitment to translating environmental chemistry research into tangible benefits for at-risk populations, with a focus on Indigenous people. As an analytical chemist she works across disciplinary boundaries to provide solutions to complex environmental health issues. At NAU she is the Principal Investigator of the Partnership of Native American Cancer Prevention (NACP), and the Director of Bridging Native American Students to Bachelor’s Degree program.
A critical aspect of Dr. Ingram’s research is fostering collaboration with Native American leaders and their communities to bridge gaps between scientific inquiry and community health. Funders of her projects include the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of General Medicine Sciences, and the National Science Foundation. She is an exceptional role model in academia and beyond who mentors diverse groups of students from pre-college to graduate levels and across ethnic backgrounds and academic disciplines. Her commitment to training, guiding, and encouraging the next generation of scientists is evident in laboratory and classroom settings.
She has published 65 peer-reviewed articles and counting. In 2018 Dr. Ingram was awarded the American Chemical Society’s Encouraging Disadvantaged Students into Careers in Chemical Sciences Award, sponsored by the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation. Chemistry World interviewed Dr. Ingram in 2024 about her work in addressing pollution on Navajo waterways from legacy mining and the resultant exposure of Navajo Nation residents to potential contaminants, especially uranium and arsenic.
Dr. Ingram will be honored at the closing banquet of the 2024 AISES National Conference on Saturday, October 5, in San Antonio, Texas. Click here access a list of past distinguished recipients.
About AISES – Advancing Indigenous People in STEM
AISES is a national nonprofit organization focused on substantially increasing the representation of Indigenous peoples of North America and the Pacific Islands in critically need STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) disciplines. Since 1977, AISES has supported individual student and professional members across the U.S. and Canada through chartered college and university chapters, tribal chapters, and affiliated PK-12 schools. Members benefit from diverse STEM-focused programming that supports careers and promotes student success and workforce development in multiple crucial areas. To learn more visit aises.org.
About Partnership of Native American Cancer Prevention
One of the most impactful endeavors at NAU by Dr. Ingram has been a researcher, mentor, and principal investigator of NACP, a 23-year collaboration between NAU and the University of Arizona Cancer Center (UACC). NACP has made impressive strides that successfully address the causal factors that drive American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) cancer inequities based on its work with sovereign tribal nations in Arizona and beyond. Moreover, NACP has had a significant positive impact on the pipeline of AIAN individuals seeking careers related to cancer health and research, including the training of early-and mid-stage AIAN investigators poised to be leaders in the field. NACP has been a driver of institutional change at both NAU and UACC by fostering an increase in cancer research capacity at NAU and health disparity-focused research at UACC and by elevating both institutions’ commitments to serving AIAN students and communities. NACP has built a strong foundation of relationship with tribal communities, governments, and other partners, based on trust and respect. Dr. Ingram is proud to be a part of NACP since coming to NAU in 2002.