Charlestown
Lorén M. Spears, Narragansett, Executive Director of Tomaquag Museum, has been an educator for 25 years and more recently as an adjunct professor at the University of Rhode Island where she also received her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education. Mrs. Spears holds a Master’s in Education from the University of New England. She shares her cultural knowledge and traditional arts learned through her family with the public through museum programs. She has written curriculum, poetry, and narratives published in a variety of publications such as Dawnland Voices, An Anthology of Indigenous Writing of New England; Through Our Eyes: An Indigenous View of Mashapaug Pond; The Pursuit of Happiness: An Indigenous View and The 1st Rhode Island Regiment in the American Revolution: From Slaves to Soldiers. She works tirelessly to empower Native youth and to educate the public on Native history, culture, the environment and the arts. She was appointed by Governor Gina Raimondo to serve on the Board of the RI State Council on the Arts and serves on various other boards including The Pell Center’s Story in the Public Square. Under her leadership, Tomaquag Museum has received the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ National Medal. She has also received a variety of awards including a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa,from the University of Rhode Island 2017, the Extraordinary Woman Award, International Day 2010, the Urban League, Woman of Substance Award, 2006 and the RI Council on the Humanities 2016 Tom Roberts Prize for Creative Achievement in the Humanities. She resides in Charlestown, RI with her husband Robin and 3 children, all of whom are traditional artists.
Most recently, Jason has taken on the role of Senior Director of Design & Technical Strategy at Isovera. Jason also speaks about Responsive Design, Web Typography, and Web Strategy at conferences and workshops worldwide.