[1] Later in life, as a high schooler, Deer visited the University of Wisconsin-Madison as part of a government and leadership program known as Badger Girls State.

[8] Following the completion of her graduate work, Deer returned to the Midwest to be closer to the Menominee Nation, settling in Minneapolis.

Due to her background in social services, Deer worked to advocate on their behalf with federal authorities.

[9] Deer and Jim White became leaders of an organization, Determination of Rights and Unity for Menominee Stockholders (DRUMS), formed in 1970 in opposition to a proposed land development of Legend Lake, a non-Indian owned artificial lake and housing property plan on Menominee land.

[9] After successfully stopping the land development in 1972, DRUMS later began the fight to reverse termination and regain status as a federally recognized and sovereign Indian tribe.

[11] As part of these efforts, Deer directly engaged with Senators and Representatives in Congress and crafted legal briefs advocating for Menominee sovereignty.

[6] Due to her advocacy, on December 22, 1973, President Richard Nixon signed the Menominee Restoration Act.

Because of her active participation in changing the legislation, Ada Deer was the first woman to chair the Menominee tribe in Wisconsin.

Before and after her term in the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Deer served on the National Support Committee (NSC) of the Native American Rights Fund (NARF).

Following her primary win, a local newspaper ran a photo of Deer proudly holding a sign reading "Me Nominee" in a reference to her tribal membership.

When Republicans won a majority in the 1994 United States House of Representatives elections, Deer was successful in preserving federal funding for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, as part of their promised Contract with America proposing to decrease the size of the federal government.

[17] Deer taught in the School of Social Work at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1977 until 1993,[1] holding the title of Distinguished Lecturer.

She also created the first program at the university to provide social work training on Native American reservations.