Please join us in congratulating Dr. Theresa Rocha Beardall as she joins the next class of William T. Grant Scholars for her work with the Puyallup Tribal Historic Preservation Department (THPD). As part of this project, Dr. Rocha Beardall, alongside a team of UW student researchers, is working under the direction and guidance of the THPD to recover Puyallup children’s boarding school records held by outside institutions for over a century and to reclaim tribal authority over their educational narrative. Learn more below, republished with permission by the William T. Grant Foundation.
The William T. Grant Scholars Program
Launched in 1982, the William T. Grant Scholars Program has supported the professional development of over 200 talented early-career researchers. Scholars receive $425,000 to execute rigorous five-year research plans that stretch their skills and knowledge into new disciplines, content areas, or methods. Recognizing that early-career researchers are rarely offered support to take measured risks in their work, the award also includes funding for training and mentorship from experts in areas pertinent to Scholars’ development. This year, we are pleased that the Bezos Family Foundation has joined us in supporting the Scholars awards.
“This year’s Scholars have proposed exciting projects that will surely push their research in new directions. We are proud to play a part in the career development of these Scholars and extend our support as they deepen their mentoring relationships, broaden their expertise, and propel research that can make a difference in the lives of young people,” said Senior Program Officer Melissa Wooten, who manages the program.
“We’re proud to support these Scholars as they take thoughtful risks, expand their expertise, and pursue research that has the potential to improve outcomes for young people,” Bezos Family Foundation Managing Director Jody Rosentswieg said. “Investments like this help build not only individual careers, but a stronger, more responsive field.”
Dr. Theresa Rocha Beardall’s work with the Puyallup Tribal Historic Preservation Department
In 2015, Washington state mandated the Since Time Immemorial curriculum in all public schools. Developed in collaboration with the state’s 29 federally recognized tribes, this curriculum offers standardized frameworks for teaching tribal sovereignty, historical injustices, and contemporary Native issues. Tribes are now developing community-driven content on their specific histories. In 2025, the Puyallup Tribe signed a memorandum of understanding with thirteen school districts to guide curriculum development on tribal culture and history. Alongside this MOU, the Puyallup Tribal Historic Preservation Department (THPD) is recovering Puyallup children’s boarding school records held by outside institutions for over a century to reclaim tribal authority over their educational narrative.
With the Scholars award, Theresa Rocha Beardall will work under THPD’s direction on two stretch areas centered on Indigenous data sovereignty. She will train in supervised machine learning and co-develop a tribally governed digital infrastructure to analyze boarding school records and support Puyallup curriculum development.
This research will require retrieving large amounts of archival data—a stretch area for Rocha Beardall. To do so, Rocha Beardall will receive mentorship from Corey Abramson, Associate Professor of Sociology at Rice University, in integrating historical microdata with large-scale administrative records. Rocha Beardall will also receive mentorship from Tsianina Lomawaima, Professor Emerita at Arizona State University, in ethical curriculum development honoring Native practices.”For too long, others have decided what counts as knowledge about Native communities in public education, often getting it wrong or leaving it out entirely. I’m thrilled to develop skills that support Native nations in reclaiming that authority and ensuring their data, stories, and knowledge systems shape what future generations learn,” Rocha Beardall said.