Ada Deer, longtime leader in American Indian issues and former director of the American Indian Studies Program at UW-Madison, has been retired for six months.

But it 's hard to tell, what with her "rolling agenda " of family, politics, Indian and women 's issues and her alma mater, UW-Madison.

"I 've gone from frantic to hectic to too busy, " Deer, 72, said. "I 'm trying to get down to pleasantly busy, but I haven 't gotten there. There 's a lot of work to do on the planet. "

Deer sprang to national attention in the early 1970s when she helped organize a grass-roots group called DRUMS (Determination of Rights and Unity for Menominee Shareholders) that successfully fought the government 's termination of the Menominee reservation.

In 1974, she became the first woman to chair the Menominee tribe.

In 1992, she was the first American Indian woman in Wisconsin to run for Congress.

In 1993, she became the first American Indian woman to head the Bureau of Indian Affairs when she was appointed assistant secretary of Indian affairs in the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Last May, she retired from UW-Madison. "That doesn 't mean I am expired, " she said, laughing.

She doesn 't use a computer. "I will eventually, but right now I 'm too busy to learn, " Deer said.

Instead, she uses the phone. "I call up people, " she said. "I am not chained to my computer the way most people are. "

Never married, she has an extended family that sits at the top of her "rolling agenda " -- two brothers, two sisters, 12 nieces and nephews, 14 grandnieces and nephews. "I am constantly involved in some aspects of their lives, " she said.

During the upcoming campaign season, she said she will be actively supporting some candidates, and she 's also trying to raise money to help ex-offenders adjust after serving time in prison.

Deer was the first Menominee undergraduate to receive a degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1957, and she was the first American Indian to receive a master 's degree in social work from Columbia University in 1961. She remains very involved with her tribe.

She hosted and organized a tribal recognition reception Nov. 10 as part of American Indian Heritage Month. "My basic nature is to be active and do things, " she said.

-- Pat Simms

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