Welcome to the 29th Annual Tribal Leaders Summit, an empowering and transformative gathering tribes from across the nation! Hosted by United Tribes Technical College, the Summit will be held in Bismarck, North Dakota from September 9-10, 2026.
Over the two days, the Tribal Leaders Summit will feature thought-provoking keynote speakers, engaging panel discussions, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities that will foster understanding, promote cultural exchange, and foster collective progress. Our diverse range of topics will touch upon vital issues such as healthcare, education, culture, economic development, and much more.
Whether you're a Tribal Leader, community member, policymaker, or an ally in supporting indigenous voices, the 29th Annual Tribal Leaders Summit is an event you won't want to miss. Join us for meaningful dialogue, collaboration, and powerful conversations that uplift our Nations, strengthen partnerships, and advance our collective future.
Agenda
Tuesday, September 8
12:00 PM - 5:00 PM
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Early Registration/Check-In
Located in the Main Lobby
Wednesday, September 9
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM
Breakfast
Hall D
8:00 AM
8:00 AM
Event Start
8:30 AM - 9:30 AM
8:30 AM - 9:30 AM
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tradeshow Opening
Hall B
10:55 AM - 5:00 PM
10:55 AM - 5:00 PM
Track 1: Economic Development
Track 2: Physical, Mental, and Public Health
Track 3: Education
Track 4: Governance
Track 5: Criminal Justice
Track 6: Culture
Track 7: Social Justice
Track 8: Agriculture and Food Sovereignty
11:00 AM - 11:50 AM
11:00 AM - 11:50 AM
Session I - Hall A
Penicillin and Partnership: The Tribal Response to
Syphilis in the Great Plains Area
Presenter: Taylor Davison and John Godoy
Indigenous Food Sovereignty and Public Health
Presenter: Ashley Littlewolf, Tahni Parisien, Amanda Strauss, Chris Taylor
Building Care Together: Implementing Integrated Care
Teams at Oyate Health Center
Presenter: Allison Joachim, Fawn Janis, Jackie Yotter
Choosing An Entity- Pros and Cons of state law, tribal, or section 17 incorporation for your 638 entity
Presenter: Clifford Rhodes
Session I - Prairie Rose Room 105
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Lunch
Hall D
1:00 PM - 1:50 PM
1:00 PM - 1:50 PM
Session II - Hall A
Powering Sovereignty: A Practical Framework for Tribal
Energy Self-Determination
Presenter: Saxon Metzger
Indian Highway Safety Program: Traffic Safety Issues
Engagement
Presenter: Justin Wendland and Kimberly Belone
Dialysis Burden and Gaps in Care Among American Indian and Alaska Native Medicare Enrollees
Presenter: Chen Wang and Zarah Mattox
Sovereign Systems: How Organizational Development and People Operations (HR) Strengthen Tribal Governance
Presenter: Tori Whipple and Elle Swan
Session II - Prairie Rose Room 105
2:00 PM - 2:50 PM
2:00 PM - 2:50 PM
Session III - Hall A
Building Wókpȟaŋ Kits: Traditional Medicines & 988 Awareness
Presenter: Martina Martinez
From Winter Counts to Data Hubs: Reimagining Public Health Data Through Tribal Sovereignty
Presenter: Sarah Shewbrooks
Human Trafficking in Indigenous Communities: How to raise awareness, prevent it, and how to respond
Presenter: Deanna Prue
Wastewater system and its potential to transform utility management on the reservation
Presenter: Joseph Serna
Session III - Prairie Rose Room 105
2:30 PM - 3:30 PM
2:30 PM - 3:30 PM
Afternoon Snack
Enjoy an afternoon snack served in Hall B.
3:00 PM - 3:50 PM
3:00 PM - 3:50 PM
Session IV - Hall A
Teaching Heart, My Life from Native American Boarding School to Leader in Education
Presenters: Ramona Klein and Dr. Matt Villeneuve
Advancing Tribal Data Infrastructure: The Contemporary Story of Winter Count
Presenter: Nick Hill
Transforming Tribal Oral Health: Care Circles and the Care Progression Pathway
Presenter: William Colson
The Cost of Carrying Everything: Nervous System Stress, Leadership Pressure, and Identity in Indigenous Students
Presenter: Whitney Nordvold
Session IV - Prairie Rose Room 105
4:00 PM - 4:50 PM
4:00 PM - 4:50 PM
Session V - Hall A
Connecting Kids to Coverage, Medicaid Application/Renewal Assistance for Children, Families, and First-Time Moms
Presenter(s): Travis Johnson, Barbara LeBeau, Kristar Shouldis
Grant Management Toolkit
Presenter(s): Tinka Duran and Miranda Whitman
Healthy Relationships, Healthy Futures for Native Communities, and the Next Generations.
Presenter: Opal Jones
Economics and Political Power of Indigenous Data Sovereignty
Presenter: Joseph Yracheta
Session V - Prairie Rose Room 105
5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Social Hour
Hor de vours and door prizes in Hall B
5:15 PM - 7:15 PM
5:15 PM - 7:15 PM
Sponsored by Fort Abraham Lincoln Foundation. Limited Tickets Available. Not open to the public.
7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Thursday, September 10
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM
Breakfast
Hall D
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tradeshow
Hall B
8:30 AM - 9:30 AM
9:55 AM - 5:00 PM
9:55 AM - 5:00 PM
Track 1: Economic Development
Track 2: Physical, Mental, and Public Health
Track 3: Education
Track 4: Governance
Track 5: Criminal Justice
Track 6: Culture
Track 7: Social Justice
Track 8: Agriculture and Food Sovereignty
10:00 AM - 10:50 AM
10:00 AM - 10:50 AM
Session I - Hall A
Session I - Prairie Rose Room 101
Session I - Prairie Rose Room 102
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Session I - Prairie Rose Room 103
Session I - Prairie Rose Room 104
Session I - Prairie Rose Room 105
Session II - Hall A
Session II - Prairie Rose Room 101
Session II - Prairie Rose Room 102
Session II - Prairie Rose Room 103
Session II - Prairie Rose Room 104
Session II - Prairie Rose Room 105
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Lunch
Hall D
1:00 PM - 1:50 PM
1:00 PM - 1:50 PM
Session III - Hall A
Session III - Prairie Rose Room 101
Session III - Prairie Rose Room 102
Session III - Prairie Rose Room 103
Session III - Prairie Rose Room 104
Session III - Prairie Rose Room 105
2:00 PM - 2:50 PM
2:00 PM - 2:50 PM
Session IV - Hall A
Session IV - Prairie Rose Room 101
Session IV - Prairie Rose Room 102
Session IV - Prairie Rose Room 103
Session IV - Prairie Rose Room 104
Session IV - Prairie Rose Room 105
2:30 PM - 3:30 PM
2:30 PM - 3:30 PM
Afternoon Snack
Enjoy an afternoon snack served in Hall B.
3:00 PM - 3:50 PM
3:00 PM - 3:50 PM
Session V - Hall A
Session V - Prairie Rose Room 101
Session V - Prairie Rose Room 102
Session V - Prairie Rose Room 103
Session V - Prairie Rose Room 104
Session V - Prairie Rose Room 105
4:00 PM - 4:50 PM
5:00 PM
5:00 PM
Event End
Speakers
Economics and Political Power of Indigenous Data Sovereignty
Native BioData Consortium
Joseph Yracheta, MS Executive Director
Healthy Relationships, Healthy Futures for Native Communities, and the Next Generations.
GPTCHB
Opal Jones (Program Manager) and Cody Ingle (Lost&Found Senior Research & Evaluation Specialist)
Grant Management Toolkit
Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center
Miranda Whitman, MPH, TECPHI Program Manager
Connecting Kids to Coverage, Medicaid Application/Renewal Assistance for Children, Families, and First-Time Moms
Great Plains Tribal Health
Kristar Shouldis, Enrollment and Retention Specialist
Connecting Kids to Coverage, Medicaid Application/Renewal Assistance for Children, Families, and First-Time Moms
Great Plains Tribal Health
Barbara LeBeau, Enrollment and Retention Specialist
The Cost of Carrying Everything: Nervous System Stress, Leadership Pressure, and Identity in Indigenous Students
Whitney Nordvold, MSW, CSW, QMHP
Connecting Kids to Coverage, Medicaid Application/Renewal Assistance for Children, Families, and First-Time Moms
Great Plains Tribal Health
Travis Johnson, Program Manager
Grant Management Toolkit
Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center
Tinka Duran, MPH, Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center, Director
Transforming Tribal Oral Health: Care Circles and the Care Progression Pathway
Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health board
William Colson - Senior Director of Allied Services
Advancing Tribal Data Infrastructure: The Contemporary Story of Winter Count
Great Plains Tribal Health
Nick Hill, Senior Informatics Director
Teaching Heart, My Life from Native American Boarding School to Leader in Education
Dr. Matt Villeneuve
Teaching Heart, My Life from Native American Boarding School to Leader in Education
Dr. Ramona Charette Klein
Wastewater system and its potential to transform utility management on the reservation.
Avanza CLEANTECH
Joseph Serna
Human Trafficking in Indigenous Communities: How to raise awareness, prevent it, and how to respond.
Great Plains Tribal Leaders' Health Board
Deanna Prue - Program Manager - Trauma & Violence Prevention Initiative/MMIR Task Force Leader
From Winter Counts to Data Hubs: Reimagining Public Health Data Through Tribal Sovereignty
Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center
Sarah Shewbrooks, MPH, Data Coordinating Unit Director and Lead Epidemiologist
Building Wókpȟaŋ Kits: Traditional Medicines & 988 Awareness
GPTLHB
Martina Martinez - Great Plains 988 TR Program Manager
Sovereign Systems: How Organizational Development and People Operations (HR) Strengthen Tribal Governance
GPTLHB
Elle Swan, Sr. Director of People Operations
Sovereign Systems: How Organizational Development and People Operations (HR) Strengthen Tribal Governance
GPTLHB
Tori Whipple, Vice President of Organizational Development
Dialysis Burden and Gaps in Care Among American Indian and Alaska Native Medicare Enrollees
GPTLHB
Indian Highway Safety Program: Traffic Safety Issues Engagement
BIA OJS Indian Highway Safety Program
Kimberly Belone, Program Coordinator
Key Note Speaker
University of Arizona
David Beeksma - Director of University of Arizona'a Udall Center
Building Care Together: Implementing Integrated Care Teams at Oyate Health Center
GPTLHB-Oyate Health Center
Jackie Yotter, RN- Vice President of Clinical Care
Building Care Together: Implementing Integrated Care Teams at Oyate Health Center
GPTLHB-Oyate Health Center
Fawn Janis, RN-Senior Director of Nursing
Indigenous Food Sovereignty and Public Health
American Indian Public Health Resource Center
Chris Taylor-Community Public Health
Indigenous Food Sovereignty and Public Health
American Indian Public Health Resource Center
Amanda Strauss-Community Public Health
Indigenous Food Sovereignty and Public Health
American Indian Public Health Resource Center
Tahni Parisien-Indigenous Food Sovereignty Project Manager,
Penicillin and Partnership: The Tribal Response to Syphilis in the Great Plains Area
Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center
John Godoy, MPH | Program Manager
Penicillin and Partnership: The Tribal Response to Syphilis in the Great Plains Area
Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center
Taylor Davison, MPH | Program Manager
Building Care Together: Implementing Integrated Care Teams at Oyate Health Center
GPTLHB-Oyate Health Center
Allison Joachim, RN-Senior Director of Integrated Care
Indigenous Food Sovereignty and Public Health
American Indian Public Health Resource Center
Ashley Littlewolf, Executive Director
Powering Sovereignty: A Practical Framework for Tribal Energy Self-Determination
Polaris EcoSystems
Prof. Saxon Metzger, CEO
Choosing An Entity- Pros and Cons of state law, tribal, or section 17 incorporation for your 638 entity
GPTCHB-OHC
Clifford Rhodes, General Counsel, Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board
Dialysis Burden and Gaps in Care Among American Indian and Alaska Native Medicare Enrollees
GPTLHB
Dr. Cheng Wang
Indian Highway Safety Program: Traffic Safety Issues Engagement
BIA OJS Indian Highway Safety Program
Justin Wendland, Program Director
Opal Jones (Program Manager) and Cody Ingle (Lost&Found Senior Research & Evaluation Specialist)
Deanna Prue - Program Manager - Trauma & Violence Prevention Initiative/MMIR Task Force Leader
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