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 CHAIRWOMAN
HELEN DOHERTY
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Helen
Helen Doherty, a member
of the Cherokee Nation, is currently developing a consultant
business since retiring after 40 years
as a public school teacher. Her last
assignment was at Bridges
Community Day School where she worked
with young people who had worn out
their welcome in the traditional school
system through expulsion, use of drugs,
weapons violations, behind in credits,
peer or family relations problems.
Helen
has written numerous successful grants
for education and recently founded the
Kudos For Kids Foundation, a non-profit
organization dedicated to the needs of
children. She had the good fortune
to be chosen as a Demonstration Site
Teacher by the Cesar Chavez National
Foundation, received the California
Teachers Association Human and Civil
Rights Award in 2003, The Los Angeles
County Fair's "Hometown Hero"
Award, NBC Channel 4 "Crystal Apple
Award', CTA's State Level "Teacher
In Politics" Award, The
Constitutional Rights Foundation's
"Teacher of Distinction"
Award, and the Bob Mack "Democrat
of the Year" award for grass roots
effort. She has been actively
involved in the Democratic Party for the
past 30 years.
She
completed her fifth term as Director
of Region 16 for the California
Democratic Party, which includes parts
of Los Angeles County, Orange County,
Riverside County and San Bernardino
County. Helen is very much looking
forward to working with the Native
American Caucus in its goal to visit all
tribes in the state and expand the
visibility and viability of the caucus
to better meet the needs of our people
who currently may be underserved.
Helen
is committed to fighting for fair and
equitable education for all of
California's kids and seeing that our
history books reflect the truth about
our culture and the culture of other
minorities. "I
am blessed with an outstanding Board of
Directors and committee chairs, and an
awesome group of caucus members, and
very much look forward to working with
them and other caucuses, as together we
help to create a better future for all
people."
 1ST
VICE CHAIR MARY ANN ANDREAS
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Mary Ann
Mary Ann Andreas is a member of the Morongo Band of Mission Indians located near Banning, California. She presently serves as vice chair of the Morongo tribal council.
Andreas is remarkable
not only because of her personal
accomplishments but for the progress she
has achieved on behalf of her own tribe
and for all California Indian Tribes.
She has worked closely with city,
county, state, and federal lawmakers on
housing, child welfare, economic
development, water and land resources,
healthcare, vocational training,
education, transportation, environmental
protection, elder care, community
planning, and tribal gaming issues.
She was the first member
of her tribe to attend Harvard
University, where she graduated from a
special program for senior executives in
state and local government.
Andreas began her public
service career in the mid-1970s, having
served as a Morongo tribal council
member, a commissioner for the All
Mission Indian Housing Authority Board,
a tribal delegate for Riverside and San
Bernardino County Indian Health Inc.,
and as a member of the Malki Museum,
which is dedicated to preserving the
cultures and traditions of Southern
California Indian tribes.
Her accomplishments
include being named National Indian
Gaming Association's Tribal leader of
the Year, honored by the California
Nations Indian Gaming association for
leadership role in the Proposition 5
campaign, cited by by International
Gaming & Wagering Publications as
one of the top ten Native American
leaders in the country, honored by the
California Black Voice Foundation as a
Woman of Achievement, named honoree and
keynote speaker for the the United
National Indian Youth Inc. Conference.
She remains a deeply
committed activist on Indian issues and
continues to work on behalf of tribal
interests on state and national fronts.
 2ND
VICE CHAIR
JOELY DE LA TORRE, Ph.D
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Joely
Dr.
Joely De La Torre, currently serves as
an Associate Professor of Public
Administration at California State
University, San Bernardino. Dr. De La
Torre previously served as the
Department Chair and Professor of the
American Indian Studies Department at
San Francisco State University, and is
only the second person in the 35 year
old department to receive tenure.
Dr. De La Torre holds an M.A. and
Ph.D. in Political Science with emphasis
in Public Policy and American Indian
Studies from Northern Arizona University
and a B.A. in Political Science with an
emphasis in Public Law from California
State University, Long Beach.
In addition to her academic
positions, Dr. De La Torre also served
as the Special Advisor to the Honorable
Cruz M. Bustamante Lieutenant Governor
of California for California Indian
Sovereign Nations in 2002. Dr. De La
Torre is also a lecturer of American
Politics for the Department of Political
Science at the University of San Diego.
Dr.
De La Torre is a descendant of the Pechanga
Band of Luiseño Mission Indians. Her
maternal grandmothers are Lupe Grijalva
Guerrero, Refugia Flores Grijalva
Zuniga, Candelaria Flores and Juana
Hapish and she is of the Ngeesikat clan.
As the first member of her family to
complete a high school diploma, Dr. De
La Torre serves as a role model for
Native youth and encourages
self-determination through knowledge and
education. Dr. De La Torre is one of
only a few American Indians with a Ph.D.
in Political Science and was the first
recipient of the American Political
Science Association Native Fellows
Program.
Dr.
De La Torre is extremely knowledgeable
in the area of Tribal Gaming, American
Indian Federal Law, Government and
Policy, Power Studies and Political
Development, California Indian Political
and Contemporary Issues, Education, Mass
Media, Tribal Telecommunications and
Social Justice Issues.
Her dissertation focused on
Tribal gaming and was entitled, “Interpreting
Power: The Power and Politics of Tribal
Gaming in Southern California.” She
has presented her research at numerous
conferences and media forums. She has
published numerous essays and articles,
including "In the Trenches: A Critical Look at the Isolation of American
Indian Political Practices in a
Non-empirical Social Science,"
in the book Indigenizing the
Academy, "Native
American Gaming in California,” Congressional
Quarterly Press, American Political
History Series Native Americans,
and "From
Activism to Academics: The Evolution of
American Indian Studies at San Francisco
State 1968-2001,"
in Indigenous Nations Studies Journal. Dr.
De La Torre is currently working on her
forthcoming book, published by the
University of Texas Press, on American
Indian Political Power in the New
Millennium.
Dr. De La
Torre is the owner and founder of
Naqmayam Communications, an independent,
full service California Indian owned and
operated public relations agency. Naqmayam
Communications, aka Naqcom, promotes
socially conscious marketing and
consumer and cultural education.
Dr. De La
Torre serves on numerous boards and
committees, such as; Board Member of the
California Indian Museum and Cultural
Center, Executive Director of the
California Indian Professors
Association, Advisory Board Members for
Senate Bill 41, and Member of the
National Congress of American Indians
Telecommunications Committee.
In addition, Dr. De La Torre is
committed to serving the American Indian
community in a number of capacities.
She served as a highly visible
campaign spokesperson, participating in
numerous television ads for both the Proposition
1A – California Constitutional
Amendment, Indian Self-Reliance
Initiative, and the
Proposition 5 – Indian Self-Reliance
Initiative.
Dr. De La Torre also serves as
the Executive Producer for the upcoming
documentary entitled, "I
is not for Indian," which
explores the controversy of how Native
American curriculum is taught in our
public schools. She has also
participated in a number of media venues
such as National Public Radio,
Television and news specials on issues
relating to Tribal gaming, social
justice issues, American Indian
political development, Native American
Graves Protection and Repatriation and
California Indian issues.
She has testified before state
legislators on California Indian
education issues and works side by side
with tribal leaders and state
legislators to implement new legislation
to benefit California Indians.
Dr. De La
Torre is the recipient of numerous
accolades for her work and community
service.
She has received the California
Teachers Association's Salute
to Friends of Education Award,
the Opportunities
Unlimited, 2002 Award, in
recognition of dedication and leadership
by Congresswoman Grace F. Napolitano and
California Teachers Association, the John F. Kennedy, Jr. Award for Outstanding Public Service, and
recipient of the National
Native American Bo Jack Humanitarian
Award.
 TREASURER
KYLE CRANDELL
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Kyle
Kyle is a member of the Robinson Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians.
Born in Oakland, the cradle of
Democratic politics in California, Kyle
noticed his place in the Democratic
Party working for Ted Kennedy's run for
president. He has been in Democratic
politics ever since.
1988: Washington State Delegate for Al Gore
1992: Present at the California State Central Committee
1994 - 1996: President, Castro Valley Democratic Club
1995 - 2001: Alameda Democratic Central Committee Vice Chair, 18th
AD
2002 - present: Native American Caucus Treasurer
 RECORDING
SECRETARY CORRINE HICKS
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Corrine
Corrine R.
Hicks is an enrolled member of the
Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians. She is
a member of the Guavish-Garbani family,
a direct descendent of Petronilla
Guavish. Ms. Hicks earned her
undergraduate degree in Urban Studies at
Loyola Marymount University and earned
her Masters Degree in Public
Administration from California State
University, Los Angeles. Presently, Ms.
Hicks resides in the urban area of Los
Angeles and is a Program Director for
United American Indian Involvement, Inc.
overseeing the administration and
operations of the Los Angeles American
Indian Health Project and the Robert
Sundance Workforce Development Program.
Ms. Hicks is also a member of the Los
Angeles City/County Native American
Indian Commission, the Los Angeles
County Workforce Investment Board, the
Los Angeles County Workforce Investment
Board Youth Council, the State of
California Indian Child Welfare Advisory
Committee, and the State of California
Department of Social Services Tribal
Advisory Group. Ms. Hicks, feels honored
to work on behalf of and advocate for
the American Indian community.
PARLIAMENTARIAN
MARY ELLEN EARLY
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Mary
Mary
Ellen Early has represented California
as a member of the Democratic National
Committee (DNC) since 1988, and was
elected to a fourth 4-year term in July
of 2000. Mary Ellen has attended every
Democratic National Convention since
1984, and has served as a super delegate
at each convention since 1992. Mary Ellen is a member of the Western States Caucus, and
serves on the Executive Board of the DNC
Women’s Caucus.
In
2000, Mary Ellen was appointed by the
Gore Campaign to convene the Vice
President’s nominating caucus in the
24th Congressional District
(Brad Sherman’s district at the time).
An active member
of the California Democratic Party
Executive Board, Mary Ellen was an
Assembly District Chair from 1986 to
1988, a Regional Director from 1988 to
1991, and has served on the Party’s
Resolutions Committee since 1993. She is
a co-editor of the California DNC Press
Democrat, a quarterly newsletter
published for the California Democratic
Party. She is a member of the Women’s
Caucus, the Vice-Chair of the Irish
American Caucus, and is Parliamentarian
for the Native American Caucus.
Mary
Ellen has been active in the Los Angeles
Democratic Party since 1985, and is
currently Chair of the Speaker’s
Bureau. She is a member of several local
Democratic clubs, and has worked on
numerous political campaigns. Mary Ellen
is a past recipient of the Distinguished
Achievement Award, presented by the
Action Democrats of the San Fernando
Valley, and in 2001 was honored by the
29th Congressional District
(now 30th CD) Democratic Club
with the President’s award, for her
service to the Democratic Party.
Mary
Ellen received her BA in Psychology from
UCLA, where she currently participates
in the Governmental Affairs Advocacy
Program, lobbying elected officials on
issues of importance to the University
of California in general, and UCLA
specifically. In 1995, Mary Ellen was
appointed to the California Board of
Psychology by the State Senate, to serve
as a public member, where she recently
completed her second term.
A
resident of Sherman Oaks for over 25
years, Mary Ellen is employed in the
Information Systems Department of Valley
Presbyterian Hospital in Van Nuys, where
she works as a Clinical Information
Systems Specialist.
 BOARD
MEMBER AT LARGE RON ANDRADE
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Ron
Ron Andrade is a member of the La Jolla Indian Tribe located in the county of San Diego and previously served on the tribal council. He is beginning his 10th year as the Executive Director of the Los Angeles City/County Native American Indian Commission. He served as the Executive Director of the National Congress of American Indians which is the largest and oldest tribal organization in the country. He has served as an specialist on Indian Affairs at the Department of Agriculture, Energy, Interior, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
 BOARD
MEMBER AT LARGE GENEVA WORTMAN
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Geneva
Geneva
Wortman,
Deputy Executive Director of the Yurok
Tribe, assists key Tribal government
managers and staff in the
administration, strategic planning,
program development, evaluation and
personnel management for the 200 Tribal
employees serving more than 4,700 Tribal
members.
Wortman
earned a Master of Public Administration
degree from the University of Washington
in Seattle, with an emphasis in Native
American education policy. Her
Master’s thesis was titled “The Early College High School Initiative for Native Youth: A Policy and
Program Analysis.” Geneva received
her BA in Planning, Public Policy and
Management, with an emphasis in Native
American education policy from the
University of Oregon in Eugene where she
was student body president.
Prior
to coming to the Yurok Tribe, Wortman
was the Legislative Assistant to the
President of the National Congress of
American Indians and worked as an
administrator and teacher for the Cesar
Chavez Public Charter High School for
Public Policy in Washington, DC where
she developed and taught the school’s
public policy curriculum. She also
worked as the Graduate Student Organizer
for Shoreline Community College in
Seattle and was a Policy Analyst for the
Early College High School Initiative for
Native Youth at Antioch University in
Seattle, creating 8 new reservation
based high schools.
Wortman
is currently one of 16 Native Americans
nationally selected for the Americans
for Indian Opportunity’s American
Indian Ambassador Program, a two-year
Indigenous rights fellowship. She was
recently awarded the “Daniel J. Evans
Leadership Award for Innovative
Leadership and Public Service” by the
Evans School of Public Affairs and the
“Graduate Student of the Year” by
the Seattle Indian Services Commission. Winds
of Change magazine in the spring of
2003 named Wortman one of twenty rising
Native leaders under the age of 30.
 BOARD
MEMBER AT LARGE CHAD GORDON
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Chad
Chad
Gordon is an attorney representing
numerous tribes throughout California
and the nation on all facets of Indian
law.
Mr. Gordon's practice
specifically focuses upon gaming
matters, tribal economic development,
labor and employment law, tribal courts,
and active or pending federal/state
legislation affecting tribes and Native
people.
As an enrolled member of the
Muscogee Creek Nation of Oklahoma, he
has a long history of effective advocacy
on behalf of Native people.
In addition to his Indian law
practice, Mr. Gordon devotes much of his
time to serving the legal needs of the
Los Angeles homeless population via
seminars and clinics he has helped
develop with non-profit organizations at
various shelters in the downtown and
surrounding areas.
Mr.
Gordon received his B.A. from the
University of California at Santa
Barbara where upon graduation, he was
the second American Indian in the
history of the campus to receive the
University of California Award.
He continued his studies at UCLA
earning both his M.A. in American Indian
Studies and Juris Doctor from the UCLA
School of law.
During law school, he worked on
both the Proposition 5 and 1A campaigns
that led to the current California
tribal-state gaming compacts.
Mr.
Gordon is a published author and
contributor to numerous publications in
the areas of Indian law, gaming law, and
labor law.
As such, he is often called upon
to speak to both Native and non-Native
groups on legal issues affecting Native
people.
Mr.
Gordon holds numerous leadership
positions and board memberships in
various political, legal, and
philanthropic organizations including
the California Indian Law Association,
Orange County Democratic Party, and
Legal Aid Foundation.
 POLITICAL
DIRECTOR MICHAEL LOMBARDI
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Michael
Michael Lombardi is a longtime advocate and author on Indian issues. During Prop 5 and Prop 1A, he served as a media spokesperson on Indian self-reliance and has worked a variety of tribal groups throughout the state.
He is also one of the country’s leading experts on tribal gaming operations management and Indian bingo management. Formerly the general manager for two of California’s most successful tribal gaming facilities -- the Chumash Casino, located just north of Santa Barbara and Casino Morongo located west of Palm Springs -- Lombardi's career in gaming spans more than two decades. He has seen the dramatic growth in bingo operations and tribal government gaming overall.
Prior to his work in Indian gaming, Mr. Lombardi spent more than ten years as a manager of charity bingo operations in Los Angeles.
A graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, his work has incorporated his academic background in psychology and ethnic studies and he is a widely respected expert in the field of gaming management.
In addition to providing management consulting services to tribal gaming operations. Mr. Lombardi is a nationally recognized columnist with Indian Gaming Business Magazine and a frequently invited speaker at forums, seminars and conferences throughout the U.S.
He is married to a member of the Morongo Band of Mission Indians and they have a daughter.
HEALTH
ISSUES - PAULA STARR
Paula
Starr is an enrolled member of the
Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma,
a parent and grandparent. She belongs to
the Bow String Society and the Hairy
Rope Clan and is a direct descendent of
Chief Black Kettle.
Currently
she is the Executive Director for
Southern California Indian Center, Inc.
(one of the largest urban American
Indian organizations in the country), a
local board member for several Local
Workforce Investment Boards in Orange
and Los Angeles Counties, FEMA in Los
Angeles County and SCIC’s Community
and Economic Development Board, Board
Member for the Native American Caucus of
the California Democratic Party,
Southern California Edison’s Consumer
Advisor Panel, California American
Indian Chamber of Commerce and Advisor
Board; and Member for Los Angeles
County’s American Indian Children’s
Council.
Paula
is an advocate for American Indian
issues, rights and concerns.
JUDICIAL
REVIEW - STEPHEN BOLINGER
Steve
Bolinger is the son of a Native American
from Pawhusa, Oklahoma, (Osage and
Omaha) and, though he was born in
Minneapolis, three weeks after his birth
he and his mother moved to Tulsa, where
he was raised. He is a member of the
Osage Nation (#002430). His grandfather,
Adelbert W. Bruce, and his maternal
great-grandmother, Elsie F. Bruce, were
both original allotted members of the
Osage nation, allotment numbers 1006 and
1002 respectively. His great-grandmother
was also an allotted member of the Omaha
Nation.
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