Eliza Skenandore was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin. She is an enrolled citizen of the Oneida Nation. She grew up on the Oneida Indian Reservation. Her parents enrolled her at the Tribal BIA School so that she could learn the Oneida culture and language. She attended K-12 and later went on to school for art and multimedia at ITT-Tech of Green Bay. She holds an associate's degree in Information Technology - Multimedia from ITT-Tech.

 

Eliza attended the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay and received her bachelor's degree in First Nations Studies with a minor in Human Development. Along with an associate's degree in Humanities. 

 

Eliza also worked for the Oneida Nation for 12 years. She was the Historical Multimedia Specialist for the History Department in Oneida Cultural Heritage Area for nine years. She also worked for the Oneida Nation Museum for 2 years. She is worked at Northeast Technical College which is located on the Oneida Indian Reservation. She worked in the library as a Library Lab Technician. 

 

Eliza is currently the Library Director at the Oneida Community Library and Green Earth Branch Library. She also runs her business, Starr Merrie Native Gifts, with her husband, Shawn Skenandore.

 

​

​