Meet the Relatives Who Make PFNAC What It Is
The Payne Family Native American Center is home to an incredible community of people and programs. Within our walls, you’ll find relatives from many areas/specialties — including building management, faculty and professors, student success services, Indigenous governance and policy work, and program coordinators, managers, and directors. Each person here plays a part in supporting Native students, uplifting Indigenous knowledge, and keeping this space vibrant and welcoming. Apart of being the eager crew to help you out the relatives are some amazing folks outside the building. Get to know your relatives here in the building down below.
Payne Family Native American Center
Zachariah Rides At The Door // Saaami' Siipisstto
Building and Program Manager of the Payne Family Native American Center
About Me:
I help care for the building, manage reservations, and support the use of spaces in and around the PFNAC. As an ambassador for the building, I enjoy sharing its cultural importance, rich stories, and the sense of abundance it offers. My goal is to help create a space that feels like a home away from home—rooted in community, culture, and storytelling.
Fun Fact:
I dance Men's Prairie Chicken style, enjoy singing, and love speaking Blackfeet while also learning other tribes languages.
Contact Info:
Email :Zachariah.ridesatthedoor@mso.umt.edu
Phone: 406-243-5831
Office: Suite 112
The NAS Faculty
Dr. Heather Cahoon
Associate Professor and Chair of Native American Studies
About Me:
I am from St. Ignatius, MT on the Flathead Reservation and teach Native American Studies. I am also a poet and non-fiction writer. I am a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes with Upper Kalispel, Nez Perce, Spokane, Kootenai, Chippewa and western European lineages.
Fun Fact:
I love being outdoors in the woods and like that Missoula has such an extensive trail system because you can always find beautiful place to go where there aren't too many people.
Contact Info:
Email: Heather.Cahoon@umontana.edu
Phone: 406-243-5838
Office: PFNAC 203B
Dr. Patrick Lozar
Assistant Professor of Native American Studies
About me:
I teach courses in Native American Studies, tribal sovereignty, history, and even film. As a researcher, my work focuses on the historical experiences of Indigenous Nations and their resistance to colonialism in North America. Born and raised in the big city of Polson, Montana, I am an enrolled member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Indian Reservation.
Fun Fact:
I ride a sweet scooter to campus every day.
Contact Info:
Email: Patrick.lozar@mso.umt.edu
Office: 203E
Fernando Sanchez
Assistant Professor NAS; Director of Elouise Cobell Land and Cultural Institute
About Me:
I am the Director of the Elouise Cobell Land and Culture Institute and an assistant professor in the departments of Native American Studies and Environmental Studies at the University of Montana. As a researcher with academic interests in both the STEM and the social sciences, my scientific approach is diverse but fundamentally founded on information science and geographical thinking, which I use to characterize environmental dynamics and their impacts on coupled human-nature systems, inform climate disaster mitigation, and bring indigenous perspectives on conservation into higher education.
Fun Fact:
Although I love the Rockies and their forests, my heart will always be by the ocean.
Contact Info:
Email: Fernando.sanchez@mso.umt.edu
Phone: 406-243-6001
Office: 203F
Polly Lauer
Assistant Professor of Native American Studies
About Me:
I am an historian who partners with Indigenous media makers in Latin America, undertaking collaborative research to understand how Indigenous journalists respond to and overcome crisis. I specifically work with Maya K'iche' broadcasters in Guatemala, who have sustained the crucial resource of Indigenous-language radio across six decades of challenges. My research and teaching center Indigenous perspectives and solidarities across the hemisphere, linking experiences between South, Central, and North America and the Caribbean.
Fun Fact:
I am a student of Maya K'iche' language. My favorite word is the verb "maltyoxinik," which means "to give thanks." To offer thanks is a vital part of recognizing everyone's value and contributions. I am thankful to be a member of the PFNAC community and to learn from UM's incredible students!
Contact Info:
Email: Polly.lauer@mso.umt.edu
Office: 203C
American Indian Student Services (AISS)
Michelle Guzman
American Indian Student Services Director
Contact Info:
Email: Michelle.guzman@mso.umt.edu
Phone: 406-243-6352
Office: 113A
American Indian Governance and Policy Institute
Kristina Lucero
American Indian Governance and Policy Institute (AIGPI) Director
Contact Info:
Email: Kristina.lucero@mso.umt.edu
Phone: 406-243-6377
Office: 112D