Culture Department Staff

Jenni SciarappaShaw

Administrative Assistant

My name is Jenni Sciarappa Shaw, and I was born and raised in Culver City, California. I later moved to Arizona with my husband, where we spent 16 years before returning to California. I’m currently working toward my degree in Sociology and am a devoted dog mom to three princess puppies and a proud aunt to several nieces and nephews.

With deep Italian roots, I was fortunate to visit Italy for the first time at 13, where my siblings and I helped our grandfather harvest his wheat crop, and I discovered my lifelong love of travel. I spent 10 years in the travel industry, traveling extensively as part of my role, and joined Chumash over three years ago in the Purchasing Department, primarily processing employee travel, before transitioning to the Culture Department.

I have a diverse background as an assistant across various fields and most recently worked with a tribe in Arizona, where I gained meaningful insight and appreciation for Indigenous culture through ongoing learning and collaboration.

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Adela Elizarrez

Cultural Research Assistant

Hello! My name is Adela Elizarrez, and I am a graduate of California State University, Los Angeles, with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and a Minor in Mesoamerican Studies. Born and raised in Los Angeles in a Mexican-American family, I am deeply passionate about learning from and preserving cultural resilience. My work with the Tribe focuses on collaborating with the community to protect and share their stories, language, and traditions, as well as assisting with bringing the Ancestors and Chumash cultural belongings back home to their traditional lands through NAGPRA. I am excited to continue this meaningful work and to share it with the community.

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Emma Lombardi

Culture and Language Programs Manager

My name is Emma Lombardi, and I was born and raised in Santa Barbara, where I currently live with my husband and 2 children. I hold a Master of Social Science with a focus on Nonprofit Resource Development from Antioch University. I am excited to work as the Culture and Language Programs Manager for the Culture Department. I am passionate about my nonprofit work and pride myself on helping my community. Growing up disconnect from my Sʰamala Chumash tribal community, I found my passion for learning our culture, language, and traditions, later in life and hope to continue to foster all I learn in future generations.

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Kalynn Hubbard

Culture Program Assistant Manager 

I have been an educator for the past 23 years and hold a Bachelor Degree in Early Childhood Education from Brandman University. I have classroom experience with ages 3 to 12, managed and mentored middle school and high school students and last, I have also managed and helped run many different summers camp programs. My father was in the Navy, so I have lived in many different parts of the world and truly understand what it means to be flexible. My mother’s family was born and raised in the Santa Ynez Valley, so I have always considered the valley to be my home base. 

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Hannah Rae Lent

Programs Coordinator Assistant

Haku, my name is Hannah and I am sʰamala Chumash as well as Mono Lake Paiute and Yokut. I have my Associates Degree in recreation management as well as a Bachelor’s degree in American Indian Studies from Arizona State University. I’m excited to be back home working in my community, a community I have been a part of my whole life. I grew up immersed in all my cultures, traveling playing hand game as well as singing traditionally. I hope to return to school and obtain my masters degree in the coming years. In my spare time I love to travel, attend gatherings such as handgame tournaments, pinenut festivals and much more.

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Kathleen Marshall – Kuši

Credentialed Samala Language Teacher

I am a mother, wife, grandmother and daughter. My parents are Teresa and Miguel Lopez. I grew up on the reservation. I got involved with language and culture when I sat on the Education Committee.  We worked hand in hand with Dr. Applegate on creating our dictionary. I then became a language apprentice under Dr. Applegate and have been learning and teaching the language ever since.

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Levi Šičwat Zavalla

Community Language Teacher

Haku – My name is Levi Zavalla. I am a Sʰamala Chumash community member and also from the Maidu and Chemehuevi tribes. Culture has been a part of my life from a very young age as a singer and dancer. I am grateful for this job as it allows me to practice our old ways every day. This is why I am proud to work for our culture department.

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Sofia Mata-Leon

Community Language Teacher

As a proud descendant of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, I am deeply connected to my heritage and dedicated to preserving my family’s legacy. Growing up on the reservation, I cultivated a profound understanding of my ancestry, shaped by the stories of my grandmother and her siblings, who faced the challenges of boarding schools and displacement. Their experiences have fueled my passion for advocating for our culture and language. Now I serve as a language and culture teacher in the culture department of our tribe, this role allows me to impart knowledge and appreciation for our heritage.

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Isabella Marshall

Community Language Teacher

Haku, ma ktɨ ka Isawella ʼalapalaxulapu ni Sʰamala čumaš i noʼ. Hello my name is Isabella I am from the Santa Ynez valley and I am Sʰamala čumaš. 

I have been involved in the language and culture from a very young age by singing and dancing with our Sʰamala dance group and learning the language through community programming and tutoring sessions. The culture and language has been a huge part of my life since I can remember, and now having my Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education and Development I want to bring my knowledge back to the tribe and work towards the revitalization of our culture and language. 

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Roberto Duran

Community Language Teacher

I am a seventh-generation decedent of Maria Solares. Born in Port Hueneme and raised in the Central Valley of California (Huron),
I have spent a substantial amount of time at my Great Grandma Isabel’s and my Nana Josephine’s home on the Chumash Reservation in Santa Ynez, California.
Currently residing in the Santa Ynez Valley, I find a significant importance in keeping the culture alive and it my duty to pass it on to the next generation.
I am inspired by nature, music, knowledge, and the old ways of his ancestors.

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Edgar Alvarez

Cultural Resources Manager

Mr. Alvarez has eight years of experience in archaeological and paleontological monitoring, surveying, and excavation in southern California and has served as a field director for the last two years. Mr. Alvarez is proficient in GIS and specializes in ESRI’s ArcGIS software including ArcGIS Pro, ArcGIS Online, Survey123, Field Maps, and Quick Capture. He also served as a collections volunteer at the UCLA Fowler Museum where he created, edited, and updated catalogs for accessions, completed osteological identification forms on skeletal/faunal remains, and cataloged artifacts. Mr. Alvarez is also a member of both the Society for California Archaeology and the Society for American Archaeology.

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Wendy Teeter

Cultural Resources Archaeologist

Wendy Giddens Teeter is the cultural resources archaeologist for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. After serving for 24 years, she retired from her positions as Senior Curator of Archaeology for the Fowler Museum, UCLA Repatriation Coordinator, and teaching in UCLA American Indian Studies. Teeter has collaborated nationally and internationally with institutions and Indigenous communities on issues of repatriation and cultural heritage protection. She is Co-PI for Mapping  Indigenous Los Angeles, a community-based website devoted to storytelling through cultural geography and map making as well as providing educational resources and curriculum and for Carrying our Ancestors Home, which tells the history of repatriation at UCLA and stories of repatriation from Indigenous communities. Since 2007, Teeter has been co-director of the Pimu Catalina Island Archaeology Project, which seeks to understand the Indigenous history of the island and Tongva homelands through multi-disciplinary and collaborative methodologies. The Project provides a field school that has educated over 150 students on the importance of community-based archaeology.  Teeter helped to develop the Tribal Learning Community & Educational Exchange Program in the Native Nations Law & Policy Center, UCLA School of Law in 2003 and serves as on its Advisory Board. She serves on several boards and committees including the Indigenous Archaeology Collective, Chair of the Society for California Archaeology Curation Committee and as a founder and advisory board member for the UCLA Tribal Learning Community & Educational Exchange Program.

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Aileena Diaz

Administrative Assistant

Aileena Diaz is the Administrative Assistant to the Elders Council, Cultural Resources
Management Office here at Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. With over 20 years in Finance
and Client Services, she has worked both alongside the Tribe for 11 years and for us for the past 11 years. She specializes in Financial Services, General Ledger Accounting, and administrative duties. Her role involves assisting our Cultural Resource Manager in daily administrative duties, payroll, and communicating with internal and external contacts. She is particularly proud of gaining knowledge about the Tribes Cultural History, Archaeology and the importance of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Aileena is excited to continue to gain more cultural knowledge with our team and support our Culture Department and Monitors.

Chanse Zavalla

Cultural Resource Monitor

Mr. Zavalla has six years of experience in tribal/archaeological monitoring, surveying, and excavation within the Chumash ancestral homelands. Mr. Zavalla has extensive experience in identifying Chumash material culture, compliance with mitigation measures, as well as identifying traditional plants and animals. He has participated in every phase of an archaeological investigation (Phase 1, XP1, Phase 2, and Phase 3) and has experience with CRM Collections, Museum Collections, Private Collections, and limited experience with NAGPRA. He also consulted and participated in Spirit Rangers, the fist Native American production on Netflix. 

Takita Zavalla

Cultural Resource Monitor

My name is Takita Zavalla, I was born in Santa Ynez and raised on the Chumash reservation, I made the best decision to move forward leaving behind 30 years of employment at the Chumash Casino Resort with an AA in gaming from DQ University and a culinary degree from Le Cordon Bleu, San Francisco. Being a cultural monitor is a meaningful job to me because I grew up in the culture and being able to contribute to the protection of my ancestors and cultural items resonates with me.  It’s a very rewarding job and I enjoy working outside standing where my ancestors once lived and capturing the most amazing sunrises. Aho.  

Joseph Lopez

Cultural Resources Technician

I’m Joseph Lopez, a Cultural Resources Technician with 5 years of experience at the Santa
Ynez Cultural Resources O!ice, where he specializes in Chumash heritage preservation
through GIS technology and fieldwork. His work focuses on ArcGIS Pro mapping, artifact
identification, and monitoring ancestral sites to ensure their protection during land
development projects.
His accomplishments within the department include:

• Precision in creating detailed GIS maps of cultural landscapes tied to Chumash history
• Field expertise in identifying lithic tools, shell middens, and other Chumash artifacts
  His passion lies in using spatial data not just as a technical tool, but to reconnect with his
  Chumash roots and honor ancestral knowledge.