The Indigenous Journalists Association (IJA) is pleased to welcome Mary Hudetz, Apsaalooke (Crow Tribe), as director of education and training. In this contract role, Hudetz will help guide the next phase of IJA’s student and professional development efforts as we continue to support Indigenous storytellers—and strengthen pathways for them to thrive. 

Among her first priorities is developing a long-term strategy for supporting and elevating the Indigenous Journalism Fellowship (IJF), the organization’s training program for college journalists. She will also focus on programming that serves early- and midcareer storytellers working primarily in Indigenous-led newsrooms. This work aligns with the 2026-2029 IJA Strategic Plan. 

Many IJA members already know Mary Hudetz. She’s a former NAJA president and first became a member of the organization in 2006, when the organization was still the Native American Journalists Association and she was a student at the University of Montana. 

Hudetz has worked as a reporter and editor for The Associated Press and as an investigative reporter for The Seattle Times and ProPublica, where she most recently was part of the Southwest unit. Along with her colleagues, she has received numerous honors, including IJA’s 2024 Richard LaCourse Award for Investigative Reporting.

Hudetz currently serves on the board of directors of Investigative Reporters and Editors. This year, she taught courses on data and interviewing techniques at IRE’s first Indigenous Student Investigative Journalism Workshop, held in partnership with IJA, in Oklahoma City.

She brings a clear understanding of the unique challenges facing Indigenous journalists and is excited to work with IJA members on reimagining a more representative and self-determined media landscape.

Mary lives and works in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She can be reached at mary@indigenousjournalists.org, and is also on LinkedIn and Bluesky.