Sokaogon Chippewa Community News

White House Announces Nomination of Charles F. Sams, III, as National Park Service Director

By Acee Agoyo, Indianz.com

President Joe Biden is once again making history with his choice to lead the National Park Service, the federal agency that oversees millions of acres of ancestral Tribal territories and Treaty lands.

If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Charles F. “Chuck” Sams III, a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation who has worked in land management and natural resource fields for decades, would be the first Native person to serve as director of the NPS, which is part of the Department of the Interior. His nomination was announced by the White House on Wednesday.

Charles F. “Chuck” Sams, III. Photo by Oregon Gov. Kate Brown

“The diverse experience that Chuck brings to the National Park Service will be an incredible asset as we work to conserve and protect our national parks to make them more accessible for everyone,” said Secretary Deb Haaland, who is the first Native person to lead Interior and the first Native person in a presidential cabinet.

“I look forward to working with him to welcome Americans from every corner of our country into our national park system. The outdoors are for everyone, and we have an obligation to protect them for generations to come,” Haaland, a citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna, said in a news release.

Read the full story here.