Mark your calendars for the inaugural event of the 2023 Reeder Speaker Series: “Better Understood by History Than by Logic: Federal Indian Policy and the Pokagon’s Experience”
This event is free and open to the public. It will be held November 2 at 6:00 pm, at the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor.
Dr. Alex Wesaw is a citizen of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians (federally recognized in Michigan and Indiana), where he serves as the elected Treasurer of the Tribal Council, Treasurer of the Tribe’s gaming enterprise (Four Winds Casino Resorts), and is the Chairman of the Pokagon Development Authority, an economic development arm of the Band. Dr. Wesaw serves nationally as a board member of the Indian Gaming Association, a board member of the National Indian Child Welfare Association, and a delegate to the National Congress of American Indians. In 2022, Dr. Wesaw was recognized as one of 40 leaders under 40 years old in the United States by the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development.
Additionally, Dr. Wesaw is also the Director of the American Indian Relations Division at the Ohio History Connection managing the relationships between the organization and more than 45 federally recognized tribes with connection to the lands now known as Ohio.
Finally, Alex holds a PhD in City & Regional Planning from The Ohio State University, a master’s degree in public administration from Ohio University, and a bachelor’s degree in communication also from Ohio University.