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Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, Native American scholar and poet N. Scott Momaday has been referred to as “the dean of American Indian writers” by The New York Times. He crafts — in language and imagery — majestic landscapes of a sacred culture.   Named a UNESCO Artist for Peace and Oklahoma’s poet laureate, he is a recipient of the 2007 National Medal of Arts for “introducing millions worldwide to the essence of Native American culture.” Momaday is the founder of The Buffalo Trust, dedicated to the preservation of Native American culture and heritage. He has held tenured teaching posts at UC Berkeley, Stanford University and the University of Arizona.   Momaday was the first Native American to be awarded the Pulitzer for his novel, House Made of Dawn. His other awards include a Guggenheim Fellowship and the “Mondello,” Italy’s highest literary honor. His works include The Way to Rainy Mountain, The Names: A Memoir, The Ancient Child and a new collection, Three Plays, that celebrates Kiowa history and culture.   Behind it all beats the heart of the oral storyteller, keeping alive — in myths and memories — the people persecuted and the land lost. “In the oral tradition,” says Momaday, “stories are not told merely to entertain or instruct. They are told to be believed. Stories are realities lived and believed. They are true.”

“Dr. Momaday's presence on campus and in our community was greeted with such deep appreciation and interest it was stunning. Every single seat in our lecture hall was filled; students opted to sit on the floor just to listen to his voice. Scott Momaday is a treasure, not only to the Native American community, but to the American community and to our world community as a powerful voice of where we have been and where we are going. Stunning.”- Arizona State University