-Shyler Umphenour
Emily Ticasuk Ivanoff Brown, Memorable Alaskan Native educator and writer,
Emily was born in Unalakleet and raised Shaktoolik; windy, native villages overlooking Norton Sound.
At the age of 15, the promising young scholar was sent away to Chemawa Indian School in Salem, Oregon. Where she not only finished high school, she earned her teaching certificate as well.
Returning to Alaska. Emily taught in Kotzebue. After a few years, she returned to the Pacific Northwest, becoming a nurse and meeting the man she married, Robert Brown.
Both resolved that Alaska would be their forever home, but only two years into their marriage, Robert passed away.
By then, Emily had three children to support, so she returned to teaching.
For a decade, Emily would teach during the academic year, then spend summers chasing college credits at UAF, eventually earning a bachelor's of science in education. She then completed her masters and another bachelor's in Inupiaq language.
Emily wrote several books as well, all centered around Inupiaq language and culture.
UAF presented Emily with an honorary doctorate for her outstanding achievements in 1982. But, a few weeks after her commencement ceremony, Emily Ticasuk Ivanoff Brown passed away.
Here in Fairbanks, Emily's life is celebrated through Ticasuk Brown Elementary, the first local school named after a Native Alaskan.
Her name Ticasuk reflects the advancement of education, “where the four winds gather their treasures from all parts of the world . . . the greatest of which is knowledge."