Minnesota Tribal Chairman to Work for President

The chairwoman of Minnesota’s Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa has decided to leave her job to work for President Obama as special assistant on Native American Affairs. Karen Driver says she hopes to have a “wider impact in Indian Country,” in her new position.

Karen Driver, chairman of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in northeast Minnesota will leave that job later this month to work in the White House as special assistant to President Barack Obama on Native American affairs.

Driver has been tribal chairman since 2007 and before that was director of special projects. She considers among her finest accomplishments overseeing the construction of the Black Bear Casino “on time and under budget.”

In her resignation letter she wrote, “I am excited by the opportunity to have a wider impact in Indian Country under President Obama’s Administration, which has shown unprecedented support for Indian Country.”