President Obama Nominates Lillian Sparks as Commissioner
National Indian Education Association
Condensed by Native Village

President Obama has nominated Lillian Sparks, (Oglala Lakota) to serve as Commissioner of Administration for Native Americans. Sparks would serve American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian communities within the Health and Human Services.

President Obama is attentive to Native Issues and asked Sparks to implement his agenda for Tribal communities.

Lillian is currently Executive Director of the National Indian Education Association. She has brought national attention to Native American education issues  for almost 6 years.

If appointed, Lillian's job will cover:

Sparks gave a brief testimony in front of the  Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. She was accompanied by  Rosebud Sioux Tribal President, Rodney Bordeaux.

 “I look forward to working with the members of this Committee to provide essential services to Native American communities across the country,” she said.

The Committee was very enthusiastic about Sparks' nomination.

Lillian will remain with the NIEA and will host their Legislative Summit on February 8-10 in Washington, DC.

Lillian Sparks joins other American Indian appointments in the Obama Administration. They include:

Larry Echo Hawk -- Interior Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs
Kim Teehee -- White House Senior Policy Adviser for Native American Affairs
 Jodi Gillette -- White House Associate Director of Intergovernmental Affairs
Yvette Roubideaux -- Indian Health Service Director

More on the Legislative Summit is at www.niea.org