After receiving her bachelor's degree in elementary education from Northern Arizona University, she returned to the Hualapai community of Peach Springs and became a teacher at the Peach Springs School.
She went on to receive her master's degree at the University of Arizona, where she then worked as a professor for three years before returning to the Hualapai Nation in 1975 to found the Hualapai bilingual and bicultural education program in response to community demand.
[1] The AILDI was the inspiration for the Canadian Indigenous Languages and Literacy Development Institute (CILLDE) which was formed in 1999.
[4][5][6][7] She has also taught at the institute since its inception and continues to teach there on a regular basis.
Some of her other published works include "Spirit Mountain: A Yuman Anthology", of which she was an editor, as well as works on bilingual education, ethnobotany, education, linguistics and language revitalization.