Garrett Hillyer
is an editor,
historian,
and educator
based in
Portland, Oregon

Garrett received his PhD in history from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. His doctoral dissertation examined food and public health in the Samoan archipelago, and drew from archival research, qualitative interviews, and participant observation conducted in American Sāmoa, Sāmoa, Hawaiʻi, California, and Aotearoa/New Zealand. Garrett has held affiliate researcher and visiting scholar positions in Sāmoa, Aotearoa/New Zealand, and Japan. He is fluent in Samoan language and has worked for international organizations and research groups as a Samoan language instructor and interpreter while contributing to the development of Samoan language teaching and learning resources.

Before beginning his doctorate, Garrett received a Master’s degree in U.S. history. His thesis explored the intersection of professional sport and urban displacement by analyzing the construction of sport stadiums and arenas in historically Black neighborhoods in the U.S. South during the twentieth century.

Garrett now works as an editor. He remains actively engaged with academic history communities and periodically teaches college history courses.