Three people devoted to the humanities and tied to Montana State
University-Bozeman will receive Montana Governor's Humanities
Awards next month.
Greg Keeler, an English professor who is known across the state
for his songs and plays; Henrietta Mann, the first endowed chair
of Native American Studies at MSU; and Helen "Gus" Miller, an
advisor to the Museum of the Rockies, will be honored along with
four other recipients on Feb. 8.
Each of the seven winners will receive a medallion and
certificate at the awards ceremony set for 4 p.m. in the capitol
rotunda in Helena, said Mark Sherouse, executive director of the
Montana Committee for the Humanities. Gov. Judy Martz is
scheduled to participate. A reception will follow the ceremony,
and a banquet will be held in the evening.
"I think Greg is not only worthy, but it's an appropriate
recognition for someone who is one of the state's creative
lights," Sara Jayne Steen, head of MSU's English department,
commented about Keeler's selection. "He is a social commentator,
poet, songwriter, essayist and playwright whose work is
thoughtful, sometimes playful and always distinctive."
Keeler has been at MSU since 1975. His work has been featured in
national forums, including PBS, and his writings have been
studied in classrooms across the country. In 1998, he won a
Charles and Nora L. Wiley Award, the highest honor MSU bestows
for research and creativity among faculty members. He is the
author of seven volumes of poetry, most recently "Sea Widow's
Journal: To a Fisherman Drowned."
"So much of what I do in the arts and humanities is collaborative
that I feel like I'm getting this award as much for others as I
am for myself," Keeler said, pointing out the contributions of
his wife, sons, neighbors, mother and several others around
Montana and MSU.
Mann has served as a professor and director of Native American
Studies programs in Montana for nearly 30 years. She has spoken
nationally on Native American issues and held national positions
with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Association on American
Indian Affairs.
"This award is really a capstone of my career, just as being the
first endowed chair at MSU has been," Mann said. She noted that
it was natural for her to become involved in the humanities.
"Based upon my cultural background as a Cheyenne woman, I have
always emphasized the humanities and the state of the human being
and have always worked to maintain that kind of focus," she
explained.
Walter Fleming, associate professor of Native American Studies
and former chairman of the Montana Committee for the Humanities,
said, "I think the importance of recognizing Henri is to affirm
the role of Native Americans in the rich cultural history of
Montana. She really does epitomize the model of the humanist. ...
As far as I'm concerned, there isn't a native person in the state
who exemplifies that role like Henri."
Miller, from Butte, served on the Museum of the Rockies' board of
trustees from 1988 to 1994. Since 1994, she has been a member of
the museum's regional advisory board. The daughter of Montana
author A.B. Guthrie, she also chaired the state-wide advisory
board for the Montana Repertory Theatre. She serves on the
advisory council to the University of Montana's School of Fine
Arts and has been a driving force behind saving and restoring
what is now Butte's Mother Lode Theatre.
Miller is a "tireless and creative friend of the humanities and a
great friend of the Museum of the Rockies," said Marilyn Wessel,
director of the museum. "She has helped us in every way, from our
dinosaur programs to our arts programs. We couldn't imagine
running the museum without her."
The award is a great honor, Miller said. She added, however, that
"It's odd to me to be honored for doing something I enjoy doing.
I would be doing it with or without the honor. It's like
breathing. It's something I feel compelled to do."
The Montana Committee for the Humanities is an affiliate of the
National Endowment for the Humanities. Gov. Marc Racicot and the
committee presented the first Montana Governor's Humanities
Awards in 1995, although the committee had been honoring
excellence in the humanities since 1984. Honoring seven people in
one year is unusual, but Sherouse said the number is small
compared to the awards that could be presented.
"There are a lot of people to honor in Montana," he said. "I
don't think we have kept up with the pace of people doing
wonderful things. This is an attempt to do that. There are many,
many more."
