Cadiente Brown serves as a vital link to Alaska Native tribes and corporations, school districts, and other stakeholders in enhancement of Alaska Native programs and services across the entire UA system. As part of her duties, she continues to serve as Director of the PITAAS program—Preparing Indigenous Teachers and Administrators for Alaska’s Schools. 

Cadiente Brown grew up in Juneau and earned her Bachelor’s degree in Social Work from Pacific University with the goal of becoming a high school counselor. She earned a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Teacher Education at Stanford University.

Ms. Cadiente Brown, who is of Tlingit and Filipino heritage, has dedicated her career toward systems improvement for student engagement, most recently serving as Assistant Dean in the UAS Alaska College of Education. She is a distinguished educator who began her career with Portland Public Schools as an Indian Education specialist prior to returning home where she served as an administrator for Juneau Public Schools for over 28 years. Ronalda’s professional experience includes Indian Studies Program Director, where she led an Indigenous curriculum project that was adopted by the district and received a federal Showcase Award by the U.S. Department of Education. She also served as a Middle School Assistant Principal, Alternative High School Principal, and leader of a dedicated team of teachers in designing a credit recovery model that increased student graduation rates. She served in the district’s central office as program coordinator of federal grants, including a Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative with multi-community partnerships and K-12 curriculum and teacher training projects.  At UAS she has served as PITAAS program director for over seven years.