Fulton, Michigan (April 18, 2024) — The Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi (NHBP) issued the oath of office today to newly appointed Tribal Council Member Robyn Burlingham-Elkins, from Kalamazoo, Michigan, during the regularly scheduled April Tribal Council Business Meeting.
Burlingham-Elkins’s appointment fills the vacant Tribal Council Treasurer seat, and she was sworn in to serve for the remainder of the four-year term, which expires in April 2025.
“I am looking forward to serving on the Tribal Council with Robyn,” said NHBP Tribal Council Chairperson Jamie Stuck. “The NHBP Community welcomes her presence and experience to our already stable and experienced Tribal legislative body. We look forward to the continuation of the self-governance and self-determination of our Sovereign Nation as we strive to provide for the next Seven Generations.”
Burlingham-Elkins will graduate in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies from Arizona State University and has earned an Associate of Arts in Business from Kalamazoo Valley Community College. She has worked within the Tribal Council office for the past ten years, serving as the Tribal Council/FireKeepers Development Authority Coordinator. She continues to serve the NHBP Community and its Tribal Members through her service on the Culture and Housing Committees, as well as through coordinating the inaugural Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) March Task Force.
“I am excited to step into this new position and hit the ground running,” said Burlingham-Elkins. “Under Council’s guidance, NHBP has made great strides toward achieving economic prosperity and well-being for our Members. I look forward to, and am honored, to serve alongside my fellow Council members.”
In addition to fulfilling the duties as Tribal Council Treasurer, Burlingham-Elkins will also serve as Chair of the Indigenous Rights Committee, the Tribal Environmental Advisory Committee, and the FireKeepers Development Authority Audit Committee, as well as the Ex-Officio of the Ogitchedaw Society Board.