Dr. Hans has been a member of the Indian Studies department at UND since 1991. Her specialty is American Indian literature and oral traditions, but she also teaches writing and history courses and has an interest in popular literature. As a former German citizen, she is interested in, and has conducted long-term field research on European perceptions of American Indian cultures. Dr. Hans is also interested in historical and contemporary quilting, particularly star quilts.

Dr. Hans has published extensively on D'Arcy McNickle, including a collection of his unpublished short stories, called The Hawk is Hungry. Other publications include papers in Studies in American Indian Literatures, the North Dakota Quarterly, and Studies in the Western, as well as various edited collections. Her newest book, D'Arcy McNickle's The Hungry Generations: The Evolution of a Novel, was released by the University of New Mexico Press in Spring of 2007.