Copyright © 2009 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

WASHINGTON D.C. - President Barak Obama has selected Kimberly Teehee, a Cherokee Nation citizen, as the new senior policy advisor for Native American Affairs in the White House Domestic Policy Council. “We at the Cherokee Nation are very proud of her leadership and accomplishments, and we appreciate her work on behalf of native people. I am confident she will represent not only the Cherokee Nation, but all tribal nations with honor,” said Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. President Obama made the announcement in taped remarks to the National Congress of American Indians during the group’s mid-year conference earlier this month. “Kim Teehee will be a tremendous asset to our team as we work to strengthen and build on the nation-to-nation relationship between the United States and tribal nations,” Obama said. “She is rightly recognized as an outstanding advocate for Indian Country, and she will provide a direct interface at the highest level of my administration, assuring a voice for Native Americans during policy making decisions.” According to a White House press release, Teehee has worked for U.S. Representative Dale Kildee, D-Mich., co-chairman of the House of Representatives Native American Caucus since 1998. Previously, she was the director of American Indian outreach for the Presidential Inaugural Committee for President Bill Clinton’s second inauguration and served in a similar position with the Democratic National Committee. Teehee also held various positions with the Cherokee Nation during the early 1990s. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Teehee was raised in Claremore and graduated from Northeastern State University in Tahlequah with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. She received a law degree from the University of Iowa where she was honored with the Bureau of National Affairs Award and served in leadership positions in the National Native American Law Student Association and the Iowa Native American Law Student Association.

Related Cherokee Nation contact information:

Mike Miller, Cherokee Nation Director of Communications Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2210) Fax: 918-458-5580 E-mail: Communications@cherokee.org Larry Daugherty, Advertising Manager Cherokee Nation - Public Affairs Phone 918-456-0671 (Ex.2324) E-mail: ldaugherty@cherokee.org

Steven Swogger, Agriculture Liaison Natural Resources Department Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2546) FAX: 918-458-7673 E-mail: sswogger@cherokee.org Bradley D. Peak, Cherokee Nation Natural Resources Specialist Phone: 918-456-0671 (ex.2843) E-mail: bpeak@cherokee.org