Indigenous Feminism & Queer Critique

Dr. Jennifer Nez Denetdale, Diné from the Navajo Nation, is a professor of American Studies at the University of New Mexico. The author of Reclaiming Diné History: The Legacies of Navajo Chief Manuelito and Juanita (2007), two book for young adults, she has also published numerous essays, articles, and book chapters. Dr. Denetdale is the chair of the Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission (NNHRC) and has served on the Commission for eight years. She has been recognized for her scholarship and service to her nation and community with several awards, including the Rainbow Naatsiilid True Colors for her support and advocacy on behalf of the Navajo LGBTQI, the UNM Sarah Brown Belle award for service to her community, and UNM’s Presidential Award of Distinction. She is the recipient of the Women’s International Study Center Fellowship and the Newberry Consortium of American Indian Studies Fellowship, both in 2019.

Creating sex-positive, queer-inclusive health education programs

A current master's student at Vanderbilt University, Kay Heffernan (they/them, she/her) is a sex education enthusiast, word nerd, and feminist advocate for youth. Most recently, they taught ninth and eleventh grade at Phillips Academy Andover from 2016–2018. As a member of Andover’s Brace Center for Gender Studies team, they developed queer-inclusive peer health education materials that promoted trans inclusivity and safer sex practices. While she schemes about how to build a radically consensual world, Kay enjoys long drives through the stretches of Appalachia that pops up between Atlanta, Georgia and Nashville, Tennessee. Currently, she is writing about classroom discourse and the role of neoliberalism in sexuality education.