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Lorrie Gax̱.áan.sán Heagy honored at Governor’s Arts and Humanities Awards

November 21, 2025

Lorrie G̱áx̱.áan.sán Heagy, Ph.D., an assistant professor of elementary education at the University of Alaska Southeast, has received a 2025 Governor’s Arts Award for outstanding contributions as an educator, artist and advocate for language revitalization through music education.

Heagy has influenced generations of students and teachers across Alaska through , an award-winning program she founded, which integrates culturally responsive music instruction with Indigenous language learning to help students reach their fullest potential.

The  honor Alaskans whose dedication to arts, culture and education strengthens communities across the state.

In the Oct. 28 ceremony at the Anchorage Museum, presenter Na Mee quoted Heagy’s anonymous nominators: “Dr. Heagy is a natural, magnetic teacher, whether with 5-year-olds or veteran educators, and extends her reach far beyond school walls,” the nominators said. “She takes the time to see each and every child and hold up their learning moments, wherever they are in the day.”

Today, Heagy brings her more than two decades of classroom and community experience to �Ӱ�ԭ��S, where she teaches and mentors future educators.

“Dr. Heagy exemplifies the heart of Alaska’s educators: innovative, community-rooted, and deeply student-centered,” said Carlee Simon, Ph.D., dean of the �Ӱ�ԭ��S School of Education. “Her work represents the kind of transformative teaching we strive to cultivate at �Ӱ�ԭ��S–inspiring the next generation of teachers to integrate creativity, culture, and compassion into their classrooms.”

Heagy’s excellence in teaching has been recognized through numerous distinctions, including Alaska Teacher of the Year, Yale Distinguished Music Educator, and the Kennedy Center Creative Ticket Award. She was also a Fulbright distinguished teaching scholar, researching the intersection of identity, agency, creativity and well-being in education.