SWAIA Announces New Board Chair & Executive Committee Appointments

Dawn Houle is elected SWAIA Board of Director’s Chair

SANTE FE, N.M., Oct. 25, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — The Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA) announces the appointment of its newly elected executive committee. Board member Dawn Houle (Chippewa Cree Tribe of Montana) has been elected Board Chair. Houle succeeds Stephine Poston (Pueblo of Sandia), who completed her term of office and brought years of experience optimizing business opportunities for Native American Tribal governments and individuals.  

“The new board members play a big role in supporting and advocating for Native Artists and I’m excited to join this world class leadership in shaping how we continue to elevate Native Artists to the world stage. We have a century of legacy work that we can build upon and I’m grateful to Ms. Poston for the tremendous efforts she provided to the organization. In a world of pressing issues and challenges, the expression of art helps us learn and celebrate. I welcome this new role to strengthen member commitments while bringing in new resources to support SWAIA and the artists,” said Dawn Houle.

New appointments to the executive committee include Michael Trujillo, Vice-Chair, and JoAnn Chase (Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara), elected Secretary.

Tom Teegarden will remain in the position of Treasurer. Natasha K. Hale, the Director of Native American Partnerships for the Catena Foundation is also a newly elected board member.

SWAIA’s Executive Director, Jamie Schulze, on behalf of the entire staff said, “We would like to thank outgoing executive committee and board members for their commitment to SWAIA and to our artists. The dates for Winter Market are Saturday, November 25, and Sunday, November 26, at the Santa Fe Convention Center. We invite everyone to join us. Tickets are available at swaia.org.”

SWAIA’s 2023 Board Members:

• JoAnn Chase (Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Indian Nation) | Secretary — Director of the American Indian Environmental Office, Office of International and Tribal Affairs.
• Randy Chitto (Mississippi Choctaw)— Artist
• Elias Gallegos— Actor and Producer
• Natasha K. Hale (Navajo) —Director of Native American Partnerships, Catena Foundation
• Andrea Hanley (Navajo)—Curator
• Dawn Houle (Chippewa Cree Tribe of Montana) | Board Chair —President and founder, SunSinger Consulting LLC.
• Bill Lomax (Gitxsan Nation)— President & CEO at First Nations Bank of Canada
• Russell Sanchez (San Ildefonso Pueblo)— Artist
• Tom Teegarden | Treasurer— Vice President of High Water Mark, LLC.
• Michael Trujillo | Vice Chair —Santa Fe community leader and public servant
• Chris Youngblood (Santa Clara Pueblo)— Artist

To become a member of SWAIA visit: https://swaia.org/memberships/

About The Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA):

The Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA) is a non-profit organization supporting Native American arts and culture. It creates economic and cultural opportunities for Native American artists by producing and promoting the Santa Fe Indian Market, the biggest and most prestigious Indian art event in the world since 1922; cultivating excellence and innovation across traditional and non-traditional art forms; and developing programs and events that support, promote, and honor Native artists year-round. swaia.org 

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SOURCE SWAIA/Santa Fe Indian Market