Fort Hall, Idaho (June 14, 2024) – After twenty-six years of service to the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, Elese Teton announced her retirement as the Executive Director of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. Her last day working for the Tribes is on Friday, June 14, 2024.
“I am deeply grateful to the employees, directors and managers who I have had the opportunity to work with to achieve numerous successes for the Tribes. The position has been both challenging and rewarding and I am confident the Tribes will continue to prosper and accomplish notable success,” said Teton.
Elese began her journey with the Tribes in 1998 as the Tribal Water Engineer where she established the Tribes Water Resources Department. She was later selected by the Fort Hall Business Council as the Tribes Executive Director in 2019. As the Executive Director some of her successes include efficiency streamlining, ensuring standard operating procedures were developed for departments, developing leadership trainings for directors and managers and implementing employee satisfaction surveys. She was instrumental in the reorganization of the Tribes.
Employees have expressed deep appreciation and gratitude for Teton including her exceptional leadership and unwavering commitment to the organization. They praised her vision, integrity and dedication and her ability to foster a culture of innovation, collaboration and respect. Other words used to describe Teton are hard work, perseverance and ethical conduct.
“We truly are going to miss Elese, but we know that she is not going far and we are excited to see her future successes. She has been a huge asset to our organization for many years and her work has left a legacy for others to follow,” said Fort Hall Business Council Vice Chairwoman Donna Thompson.
Tino Batt, Deputy Executive Director will serve as the Interim Executive Director effective June 14, 2024 until such time the position is advertised and selected.