8:30 am - 11:00 am Friday, February 2, 2024 

8:30-8:45 Dr. Sarah E. Rinkevich, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Ann-Marie Chischilly, Vice President of the Office of Native American Initiatives (OANI), Northern Arizona University (NAU)

Opening Remarks & Welcome

8:45-9:15 Gloria Tom, Director, Navajo Nation’s Department of Fish and Wildlife

Wildlife and Fisheries Management on the Navajo Nation

Gloria is the Director for the Navajo Nation Department of Fish and Wildlife and has served in

this capacity since 1998. Previously worked for the Navajo Nation as a Wildlife Manager,

Wildlife Biologist and an Environmental Specialist over the past 35 years. Additionally, Gloria

has worked as the Director for the San Carlos Apache Tribe’s Recreation and Wildlife

Department and as a District Supervisor in Las Cruces, NM for the US Department of

Agriculture’s Wildlife Services, formally known as the Animal Damage Control.

Gloria has a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Management from the University of

Arizona, Tucson, Arizona and currently resides near Window Rock, Arizona in the small

community of Saint Michaels.

9:15-9:45 Twila Cassadore, San Carlos Apache Tribe

Indigenous food sovereignty and Indigenous food traditions throughout the Western Apache Tribes

Twila Cassadore will discuss Apache Indigenous Knowledge of plants and animals and cultural significance of wildlife species.

9:45-10:15 Dr. Serra Hoagland, National Program Lead Tribal Research, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain

Research Station

Tribal Wildlife Stewardship: a model for sustainability

Dr. Serra Hoagland (Laguna Pueblo) currently serves as the Acting National Program Lead for

Tribal Research for the USDA Forest Service. She previously served as the Tribal Relations

Specialist for the Rocky Mountain Research Station (RMRS). In her work, she focuses on

building local, regional and national partnerships with tribes and intertribal organizations,

mentoring students in natural resources, and conducting research that is relevant to Native

communities. In 2022 she detailed as the National Program Lead for Tribal Research for the

USFS and in 2021 with Region 4 as the Regional Tribal Relations Program Manager. Prior to

joining the RMRS Serra worked as a Biological Scientist and as the Tribal Relations co-point of

contact for the Southern Research Station in Asheville, North Carolina. She began her Forest

Service career working on the Lincoln National Forest in 2010 as a SCEP wildlife biologist

trainee. As the first Native American to graduate from Northern Arizona University with a PhD

in forestry, Serra studied Mexican spotted owl habitat on tribal and non-tribal lands in south-

central New Mexico. She has 8 book publications and 16 peer reviewed journal articles and most recently was nominated as a Fellow for The Wildlife Society in 2023. In 2020, Dr. Hoagland was nominated for a professional of the year award and was selected as the most promising scientist by the American Indian Science & Engineering Society. Over the years, she has been actively involved with the Society of American Foresters, the Intertribal Timber Council, the Native American Fish & Wildlife Society as well as The Wildlife Society.

9:45-10:15 BREAK - Refreshments in the corridor & Exhibitors, Raffle, Auction, & Photo Contest in the Flagstaff Room

9:45-10:15 - All Panelists 

Wildlife Stewardship on Tribal Lands Panel Discussion and Q & A