Jeannette Armstrong, 1948 - Jeannette Armstrong is an Okanagan Indian who was born in 1948 on the Penticton Indian Reserve in British Columbia. She is considered to be the first Native American woman novelist, and is also a writer, teacher, artist, sculptor and activist. She received a traditional education from Okanagan elders and her family and in 1978, she obtained a BFA from the University of Victoria in 1978. Armstrong writes poetry, fiction, essays and children's literature. In 1986 Armstrong became the director of the En'owkin Centre in Penticton. She is also the first director of the En'owkin International School of Writing in Penticton, a creative-writing school organized by and… for Native people which grants diplomas through the University of Victoria. She also teaches creative writing and performance.