Jane Mt. Pleasant, director of the American Indian Program at Cornell, was presented with the highest honor of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) at the organization's national conference in Houston in November.

"The Ely S. Parker award recognizes Jane for her significant work in science and her involvement in the wider community," said Norbert S. Hill Jr., executive director of AISES. "It honors her efforts in working to improve the welfare and well-being of the Indian community."

Mt. Pleasant has served as director of Cornell's American Indian Program since January 1995. Established in 1983, it is one of the most respected American Indian programs in the country, providing educational programs in native studies and publishing the award-winning journal, Native Americas.

An associate professor in Cornell's Department of Soil, Crop and Atmospheric Sciences, Mt. Pleasant is director of the American Indian Agriculture Project, which seeks to preserve traditional Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) crops and varieties, to study indigenous agricultural practices for their relevance and potential contribution to agriculture today, and to revitalize and enhance Indian agriculture in New York. The major focus of the project is studying the "Three Sisters" -- corn, beans and squash planted together in earthen hills -- as a model for sustainable agriculture.

A native of Syracuse, N.Y., Mt. Pleasant earned bachelor's and master's degrees in agronomy from Cornell and a doctorate in soil science from North Carolina State University. She has received teaching and research grants from the National Science Foundation and has been active in presenting information about sustainable agriculture and Indian culture statewide through Cornell Cooperative Extension and 4-H programs.

Mt. Pleasant's father, Carl Mt. Pleasant, was a member of the Tuscarora Indian reservation in Lewiston, N.Y.

The Ely S. Parker Award was established in the name of a 19th century Tonawanda Seneca who was the first American Indian engineer in the country; he assisted in the design and construction of the Erie Canal. He served as an assistant to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant during Gen. Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox.