Niigaanii gimaakwe, Abigail Eiler miiwa (she/hers/they) currently is a clinical assistant professor at the School of Social Work. Eiler is a licensed clinical social worker and MSW '06 alumnus. She began teaching in 2014 and immediately fell in love with providing instruction to developing social work professionals. Shortly after joining the governing faculty in 2018, she became the Chair of the Recruitment, Admissions, Student Services and Financial Aid Committee. This committee is responsible for reviewing and assessing policies related to recruitment, admissions and financial aid. Within the past two years, the committee has made enhancements to the MSW application questions, enacted “Ban the Box” practices, reviewed and awarded special scholarships to students currently enrolled in the program, and worked collaboratively with a special task force on creating processes for the technical advising pilot that was implemented this Fall. In addition, she was appointed to the Big Ten Anti-Hate Anti-Racism Coalition, Chairs the Big Ten Mental Health Cabinet and serves as the Chief Diversity Officer for Michigan Athletics.
Eiler carries many socio-cultural identities. Moving to Michigan at age four, she attended Ann Arbor Public Schools which provided access to several resources, strong athletic skill development, and the responsibility to start challenging racist and oppressive systemic issues at a rather young age. She quickly learned that her cultural beliefs and values were not welcomed in many AAPS spaces; Native people were often depicted as savages in textbooks and class discussions around Thanksgiving, while Black people were often described as formerly enslaved, poor and uneducated. By the time she was six years old, it was not uncommon for her to hide her Shawnee and Tuscarora heritage when outside of her Native communities. As she entered Middle School and learned about the Two Row Wampum, she began acknowledging there was a space for her sociocultural identities to live together in peace without being misled by external influences, attitudes and beliefs. She started attending church, synagogue, traditional ceremonies, and the mosque – working hard to create a pathway to nurture and embrace all of her relations. She believes that her DEI framework was intentionally created by the seven generations that came before her and guides her unwavering commitment to addressing deeply ingrained injustices in our present-day society, which will have an impact on the seven generations that follow. Her traditional beliefs propose that our daily actions and decision-making influence and impact those who follow in our footsteps.
Through her formal social work education, daily consultation with students, friends, family and colleagues, and personal experiences with racism and discrimination, she thoughtfully creates safe spaces for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and allies to process their thoughts, feelings, and actions. She recognizes that the formalization of DEI in the academy is something that has made great strides over the past years while noting that we still have a long way to go. She is committed to collectively working with others to: (
- examine our institution's needs
- improve racial and social justice issues on our campus and throughout the Big Ten Conference
- dismantle (oppressive and racist) systems that have existed in our country for over 500+ traumatic years.
As we enter Native American Heritage Month, Professor Eiler recommends that we explore the following resources to work towards creating a more inclusive and respectful campus culture.
- The Seven Grandfather/Grandmother Teachings
- Brief video clip (APA) Working With Indigenous/Native American Patients
- BigFoot, D. S., & Center, I. C. C. T. (2007). American Indian youth: Current and historical trauma. Oklahoma City, OK: University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, Indian Country Child Trauma Center.
- TIP61: SAMHSA Behavioral Health Services for American Indians and Alaska Natives
- White Bison Daily Recovery Meditation
Pii Maamwinokiyaang, Miidash Nibwaakaayaang (When We Work Together, Then We Are Wise)."
Abigail Eiler, Clinical Assistant Professor