Theodore (Ted) S. Jojola (Board Member) has been at the University of New Mexico since 1980. For the first two years he was Acting Director of the Native American Studies Program, then in 1982 he became its Director until 1996. From 1982 until 1996, he held a joint-position with the Masters Program in Community & Regional Planning (MCRP). Shortly after he transferred full-time into MCRP, he attained the rank of full-professor.

Dr. Jojola has published numerous articles and book chapters, as well as conducted extensive research in various issues related to tribal community development. He is highly regarded as one of the foremost lecturers in contemporary tribal issues. He is the only Native American in the nation who holds the rank of Professor of Planning in a major university.

The breath of his interests includes Indigenous Planning, Indian stereotyping in film and media, cultural aspects of technology, human settlements, and US Federal/Indian relationships. He has served on numerous federal, state and local boards. Among his major accomplishments has been creating a degree program in Native American Studies at the University of New Mexico and advising the US Census Bureau on data needs for American Indians and Alaska Natives. Presently, he is co-facilitating the development of a formal division in Indigenous Planning with the American Planning Association.

Dr. Jojola is an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Isleta, where he currently resides with his wife, Dr. Adelamar Alcantara. After the tragic loss of their teenage son, Manoa Jojola, who in 2001 was the innocent victim of a high-speed police chase, they successfully lobbied the 46th NM State Legislature to enact the LAW ENFORCEMENT SAFE PURSUIT ACT, intended to protect both the public and the police from dangerous automobile chases. With the assistance of the Albuquerque Academy, they have also established a sustaining endowment in their Son’s memory in support of cultural diversity and the expressive arts.

Dr. Jojola is the first faculty in the history of the School of Architecture and Planning to receive a Regents’ Professor.