Welcome to the home page of De Anza College's American Indian Studies Dept.
I am currently the only faculty member teaching in this department. My name is Gerri Parker and I am of Choctaw, Cherokee and German American (Pennsylvanian Dutch) descent. Both tribes are originally from the Southeast, but tribal members were forced by the US military to leave their traditional homelands and were marched to Indian Territory.
I am married to a Choctaw (34 years) and together we have 4 grown children, a lot of grandchildren (4 biological grandsons and 4 more that call me Grandma Gerri and 2 little girls that also call me Mombo! That's what they all call me instead of Grandma.) I have been teaching at De Anza since 1983. For 10 years I was a part time instructor and then I was hired full time in 1993. I have taught at the University of Santa Clara, San Jose City College, Ohlone College, Evergreen College and guest lectured at San Jose State and Stanford University. I have been a Native Studies curriculum developer and trainer for local and national Indian Education Programs and the Office of Indian Education. I've conducted a substantial number of teacher training workshops in the Bay Area concerning American Indian students and their learning needs, native cultures, art, history and Thanksgiving myths and developed resource materials for reading books and Social Studies programs by grade level. I ran the Tutorial Center at the San Jose Indian Center, the Adult Ed/G.E.D. Program and functioned as the Vocational Counselor at the Center, placing adults in vocational training programs. I was employed for a number of years as a teacher, curriculum developer and workshop trainer for Westpoint Elementary School in Calaveras County, Fremont Unified School District in Fremont CA and the Livermore Unified School District.
I did my undergraduate work in Anthropology with an emphasis in California Indian prehistoric archaeology. It was not a very popular idea to be an American Indian and a working archaeologist, especially one excavating sites with American Indian burials in the late '60s and early '70s when I was in school at CSU Hayward (which is now CSU East Bay). After graduating I worked one summer professionally on a site disrupted by the building of Interstate 5 near Tracy and Manteca. I made the decision to leave the field of archaeology and applied to CSU Hayward's new Teacher Corps Program. A partnership with the Berkeley Public School District enabled the Interns of this partnership to teach in the the Berkeley schools. We also pioneered the Master's Degree in Multicultural Curriculum Development and I left at the end of the 2 year program with California Single and Multiple Subject California teaching credentials. I also hold 2 lifetime California Community College Teaching credentials.
At De Anza in addition to teaching American Indian Studies courses I also teach other Intercultural Studies courses:
ICS 2 Cross-cultural Perspectives for a Multicultural Society
ICS 4 Race, Ethnicity and Social Stratification
ICS 9 Studying Race and Ethnicity: Theories and Methods
AMERICAN INDIAN STUDIES DEPT.
Phone number: 408-864-5448
E-mail parkergerri@fhda.edu
Website
http://facultydeanza.fhda.edu/parkergerri/
The American Indian Studies (A.I.S.) Department is part of the Intercultural-International Studies Division. Degree opportunities in Intercultural Studies with an emphasis in American Indian Studies is an option. The AIS Dept. serves as the focal point for financial aid, transfer resources and a sense of community on a campus of 25,000 students. Students enrolled in A.I.S. Dept. courses also serve as volunteers to the American Indian community's activities and organizations.
TEACHING SCHEDULE SCHOOL YEAR 2009-2010 
FALL QUARTER 2009
Office: MCC 22: Office hour: 1130 am to 1220 am MTWR
I am not available on Fridays except by appointment.
FALL 2009 Classes:
ICS_044.01-----------MTWR 1030 to 1120 am in MCC-15
AMERICAN INDIAN RELIGIONS AND PHILOSOPHICAL THOUGHT
ICS_044.02-----------T/TH 130 PM to 310 PM in MCC-15
AMERICAN INDIAN RELIGIONS AND PHILOSOPHICAL THOUGHT
ICS_045.01-----------MTWR 930 to 1020 AM in MCC-15
Survey of American Indian Art
ICS_045.02-----------MTWR 1230 PM to 120 PM in MCC-15
Survey of American Indian Art
WINTER QUARTER 2010
Office hour MTWR 1130 am to 1220 pm MTWR in MCC 22 or by appt.
I am not available on Fridays except by appointment
WINTER CLASSES
ICS_044.01----------1030 am MTWR in MCC-15
AMERICAN INDIAN RELIGIONS AND PHILOSOPHICAL THOUGHT
ICS_044.02----------130 M/W in MCC-15
AMERICAN INDIAN RELIGIONS AND PHILOSOPHICAL THOUGHT
ICS_045.01-----------930 am MTWR MTWR
Survey of American Indian Art
ICS_045.02-----------1230 pm MTWR
Survey of American Indian Art
SPRING QUARTER 2010
in MCC 22 or by appt.
I am not available on Fridays except by appointment
Spring Classes
ICS_09.01--- in MCC-15
ICS_09.02------ in MCC-15
Survey of American Indian Art
ICS_045.01-- in MCC-15
Survey of American Indian Art
ICS_045.02-- in MCC-15
SUMMER SESSION 2010
OFFICE HOUR: By appointment only during Summer Session
ICS 45
ICS 9
