Kenneth Lokensgard

Biography

Research Interests

Ken Lokensgard’s research has focused upon the sometimes conflicting ontologies and epistemologies of Indigenous and Non-Indigenous peoples. Specifically, he has worked with Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) elders and ceremonialists, in the US and Canada, to highlight the personhood of Blackfoot ceremonial items and the need for their repatriation. He is also interested in traditional protocols of reciprocity practiced by Native Americans and how they inform Indigenous research methodologies. Lokensgard is committed to promoting the importance of these protocols and methodologies, as means of facilitating collaborative work between Native and Non-Native communities. He is also committed to promoting Native scholarship and scholars within the academy and elsewhere.

Teaching Interests

Lokensgard teaches courses on Indigenous research methodologies, Tribal sovereignty, Indigenous religious traditions, and the religious themes in angling and other sporting literature.

Selected Publications

• J.I. Mills, …, K.H. Lokensgard, et al., “Institutional Commitments to Ensure Native Graduate Student Success.” New Directions in Higher Education 187 (Fall 2019).
• “The Ontological Turn, Indigenous Research, and Niitsitapi Protocols of Reciprocity. “ In Rethinking Relations and Animism: Personhood and Materiality, edited by Graham Harvey and Miguel Aguilera. Routledge, 2018.
• “From Serpents to Fly Fishers: Changing Attitudes in Blackfeet Country toward Fish and Fishing.” In Backcasts: A Global History of Fly Fishing and Conservation, edited by Samuel Snyder and Elizabeth Tobey. University of Chicago Press, 2016
• Blackfoot Religion and the Consequences of Cultural Commoditization, Ashgate Publishing, 2010. Reprint, Routledge, 2017

Other Roles

• Adjoint Faculty Member, WSU Department of Anthropology
• Member, WSU Institutional Review Board (Non-Scientific, AI/AN Expert Reviewer)
• Founding Coordinator, WSU Native American Pre-Health Program
• Instructor, WSU Tribal Nation Building Leadership Program: “Indigenous Research” courses: American Indian Studies 400 and AIS 401

Education

• PhD, Religious Studies, Syracuse University
• MPhil, Religious Studies, Syracuse University
• MA, Religious Studies, Arizona State University
• BA, Religious Studies (major) and Native American Studies (minor), University of Montana