Yale College Dean Mary Miller tapped Kirk Hooks, currently the special assistant to the dean of student affairs for intercultural and intergroup relations, to serve as acting director of the Native American Cultural Center last week. In July, Hooks will take over from Shelly Lowe, who announced her departure two weeks ago when she was named director of the Harvard University Native American Program. Hooks, who is himself part Native American, came to Yale in August 2008 as the first “intercultural czar” to coordinate affairs across Yale’s many cultural groups. Dean of Student Affairs Marichal Gentry said the appointment of a permanent replacement is on hold until American Indian historian scholar Ned Blackhawk joins Yale’s faculty this summer to provide input on the process.