A local leader will be heard at a much higher level after this week.
Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa & Chippewa Indians tribal chairman, Derek Bailey, was sworn in as one of 15 members of the National Advisory Council on Indian Education on Nov. 3 in Washington, D.C.
Bailey's appointment to the council was announced earlier this year, in May, when President Obama appointed six new members of the council.
"The expertise and commitment these men and women bring to their roles will make them tremendous assets to my administration, and I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead," says President Obama in the announcement.
The other new appointees to the council are Thomas R. Acevedo, Robin A. Butterfield, Robert B. Cook, Deborah Jackson-Dennison, and Alyce Spotted Bear. Bailey is the only new appointee from the upper Midwest region.
Bailey was sworn in as the Grand Traverse band's tribal chairman in late 2008, and is the youngest chairman in the tribe's history. He also is the chairman of the Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan, and of the Chippewa/Ottawa Resource Authority. His background includes a master's degree in social work from Grand Valley State University.
In the same announcement, the President also appointed five tribal representatives to the Joint Public Advisory Committee of the Commission for Environmental Cooperation.
Writer: Sam EgglestonSource: President Obama, The White House
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