Indonesia: Arts, Religion, and Social Change

Faculty and Staff

Ni Wayan Ariati , PhD, Academic Director
Ni Wayan Pasek Aryati (Ary) completed her doctoral work at Charles Darwin University of Darwin, Australia, a city whose location on the north coast of Australia makes it a natural partner in the future of Indonesian-Australian relations. Aryati comes from a small rice-farming community in the Tabanan region of Bali and is still involved in the social and religious life of her native town. She completed her BA in English literature and linguistics at Udayana University in Denpasar in 1988 and joined the Indonesian language teaching staff of the SIT Indonesia program in 1991. She was appointed coordinator of that program in 1992 and served in that capacity until 1997, when she and her family shifted to Darwin, Australia. In Darwin she worked as an instructor in Indonesian language before returning to the SIT program in Bali in 1999. In 2000–2001, she served as one of the academic directors for that program, and subsequently took up posts with SIT in Western Samoa and North India. Her experiences in North India kindled her desire to make a comparative study of female images in the Hinduism of India and Bali. This led to her doctoral work at Charles Darwin University (CDU), where she completed her dissertation in history and women’s studies titled “Journey of a Goddess: Durga in Indi, Java and Bali.” Her published articles include “Theodicy in Paradise” (Journal of the South and Southeast Asian Association for the Study of Culture and Religion, New Delhi, June 2010).

Garrett Kam, MA, Academic Advisor
Garrett Kam is from Hawaii but has been active in Indonesian studies since 1975. He has a B.A. in textile arts and Asian religions and an MA in Southeast Asian history and Asian theater. He studied Javanese dance and culture for three years in Yogyakarta and teaches, performs, and choreographs Javanese and new Asian dances. Since 1987 Garrett has lived in Bali where he researched rituals as a Fulbright scholar. He has been a temple assistant since 1990. He is curator of the Neka Art Museum and has organized many exhibitions and written many books, catalog essays, and articles. Garrett has assisted with the SIT program since 1989 as ISP advisor and seminar presenter.

I Wayan Gede Yudistira, Homestay Coordinator
Wayan Gede Yudistira (Pak Gede) earned his degree in political science from the Warmadewa University Denpasar in 1989. He worked as a bank manager in Denpasar and in the Ubud area for five years before he joined the SIT Study Abroad Bali program in 2006.

Ni Luh Mas Mirah Septiarini (Mirah), Program Assistant
Luh Putu Masmirah Septiarini, or Mirah, completed her diploma in English Language in 2005 and received a scholarship to continue her studies to earn a bachelor’s degree in English language and literature in 2008. She started her career as an English tutor for children, teenagers, and adults in 2003. In 2007 Mirah worked as ground handling staff for Malaysia Airlines at Ngurah Rai Airport. She joined SIT Study Abroad Bali in the fall of 2009 as a language instructor, and in the spring of 2012 she was appointed program assistant. She enjoys reading books in a variety of genres, watching movies, traveling, and working as a volunteer at international events in Bali.

Language Program Coordinator and Staff: The intensive Indonesian language course is taught by highly qualified instructors who graduated from the Udayana University Denpasar, Bali. They are the authors of “Bahasa Indonesia for Beginners” used exclusively on the SIT Study Abroad Bali program.

Language Instructors Include:

I Made Yudiana, Language Coordinator
Made Yudiana (Pak Yudi) joined the SIT Program in Bali in the fall of 2001. He completed his BA in English at Udayana University the following year. Before joining the SIT Program in Bali, he worked for many years in the NGO field, especially for Bali Hati, an NGO specializing in educational support for children of lower income families in Gianyar and Badung regencies. He devotes much of his free time to further developing his mastery of English and often provides assistance to local institutions delivering English language courses to native speakers of Indonesian.

Aries Pratiwi, Language Instructor
Aries Pratiwi earned her bachelor’s degree in English language and literature from Udayana University in 2009. She joined SIT Study Abroad Bali as a language instructor in spring 2011. Before joining the SIT Study Abroad program, she taught English as a second language for four years while she was still in university. She feels her experience in both learning and teaching English has helped her relate to foreign students in their language learning.