UAA Alumni Profile: Martha Gould-Lehe, B.Ed. 88

Martha Gould-Lehe has overcome tremendous adversity to get to where she is today. She's faced her fair share of challenges in her lifetime, but has overcome those challenges and is a stronger person as a result.

An Alaska Native of Athabascan and Irish descent, Martha was born in a cabin in Medfra, a small rural trading post on the banks of the Kuskokwim River. Her father ran a trap line in the winter months and worked as a miner during the summers. Martha and her siblings spent their childhoods hunting, trapping and living the true Alaska lifestyle.

Martha's parents divorced when she was 10 and she went to live in Kansas with her aunt, while her siblings were scattered to different foster homes. After a few years Outside, Martha returned to McGrath and lived in a children's home through the eighth grade. She graduated from Dillingham High School in 1970.

Her foster parents, both teachers, inspired her to pursue a career in education. After earning her high school diploma at 17, she married a classmate from the Aleutian Islands and moved to King Cove, where the couple lived with their three children for 14 years before moving to Anchorage so Martha could finish her college degree. Martha took 15 credits via correspondence through the University of Alaska before moving to Anchorage.

Martha admits that making the move from rural Alaska to the urban hub of Anchorage was a difficult transition. After getting her son through the first grade, the 31-year-old mother decided it was time to go back to school. She put her nose to the grindstone, working full-time while taking classes, and studying in between her kids' hockey practices and cross-country meets. Martha earned her Bachelor of Education degree with a minor in special education in 1988.

She chose to complete her degree at UAA for the quality of its education program and because she wanted to teach in Anchorage. "The professors in the College of Education were very helpful," Martha said. "They took the time to get to know their students."

Right after earning her degree, Martha's husband was killed in a car accident. Through tragedy, she has managed to keep her family oriented and still believes life has purpose for all of us.

She started her career with the Anchorage School District more than 20 years ago as a substitute teacher before becoming a classroom teacher. She taught at several elementary schools in the Anchorage area including Ursa Minor, Muldoon, Chugiak and Kasuun.

The first in her family to earn a college degree, Martha set a goal for herself after earning her undergraduate degree from UAA: to earn a master's degree within her first 10 years of teaching. While teaching at Muldoon Elementary, her principal encouraged Martha to enroll in a master's degree program offered through the University of Kansas. With her goal in mind, Martha spent three intense summers in Kansas and earned her M.Ed. degree in 1993, focusing her studies on developing math and science curriculum for Native American students.

Martha believes that everyone is born to fulfill a specific purpose. "I kept hearing this voice in my head saying that I needed to start an Alaska Native charter school," she said. Martha and a group of dedicated people worked for two long years before the school became a reality. It took many hours of research and a lot of elbow grease, but the K-7 Alaska Native Cultural Charter School, the state's first Title I charter school, opened its doors in 2005.

The school's curriculum is based on Native ways of instruction and learning, and is structured around four guiding themes: Living in Place; Language and Communication; Culture and Expression; and Tribe and Community. All Alaska Native ethnic groups are incorporated in the sequence of study through the elementary years.

"It's rewarding to see Native students succeed," Martha said. She is currently assigned to teach a fourth grade class and serves on the school's Academic Policy and Curriculum committees. For her leadership in education, Martha was named the BP Teacher of the Year in 2000.

Martha remarried in 1990 and is raising two of her grandchildren. She has overcome personal tragedy and encourages others to keep a positive outlook. "We all leave behind footprints," she said.