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Joan Tavares Avant (b. 1942), also known as Granny Squannit, is a Mashpee Wampanoag tribal leader, historian and writer living in Mashpee, Massachusetts. She is the grand-daughter of respected Mashpee leader Mabel Pocknett Avant (Nokomis). Avant has served three terms as Tribal President, four terms as Tribal Historian, and was the Director of Indian Education in the Mashpee public school system for 26 years. In that latter capacity, she worked to provide guidance and promote cultural awareness to local Wampanoag students and teachers, as well as provide after school day care and tutoring services. She worked with Native and non-Native educators to create a curriculum highlighting local Wampanoag elders, culture, history, legends, and values.

In 1993, the Falmouth Affirmative Action Committee recognized Avant for her work with education. In November 2012 she was chosen to be featured in the CBS News segment Wampanoag: Reviving the language discussing the Wampanoag Language Reclamation Project. Avant received a Bachelor of Arts in Human Services in 1993 from the University of Massachusetts Boston, and a Masters in Education at Cambridge College in 1995. At present, she is working on a doctoral degree in Education at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Avant remains actively involved in the Mashpee community as a Clan Mother, Commissioner for the tribal Housing Commission, and member of the Mashpee Historical Commission. She also serves on the Mittark Committee, which publishes Nashauonk Mittark, the monthly Mashpee Wampanoag newsletter.

Publications
Avant has a long career as a columnist for the Mashpee Enterprise, in which she presently has a column titled "Tales From Granny Squannit", and has also written for the Cape Cod Times. Two of her articles, Now, and Always Wampanaog and With Intent to Civilize,  have been featured in the Cultural Survival quarterly magazine. She is also an editor of the National League of American Pen Women’s newsletter.

She has also self-published two books: Wampanoag cooking: A prelude to the soon-to-be-published book Wampanoag foods & legends (1993) and People of the First Light(2010). The later is a compilation of personal memoirs, Wampanoag history, and recipes, focusing on Avant's own experiences in the Mashpee Community.