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Overview
Cherokee Nation is the federally recognized government of the Cherokee people, exercising sovereign authority granted by treaty and law. Its operations are centered at the W.W. Keeler Complex in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, where the tribal government and affiliated agencies conduct governance, services, and programs for enrolled Cherokee citizens. The Nation’s role includes lawmaking, public administration, and cultural and economic development within its territory. Unlike typical corporations or non-profits, the Cherokee Nation functions as a self-governing political unit with a government-to-government relationship with the United States. Its goal is to sustain Cherokee sovereignty, support its citizens, and promote cultural preservation and community well-being.
About Cherokee Nation
Industries
Government & Public Sector
Company Size
1,001-5,000
Company Stage
Grant
Total Funding
$13.1M
Headquarters
Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Founded
N/A
People at Cherokee Nation
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- Justice Center consolidates courts, prosecutors, and law enforcement in one facility.
- Education Services oversees college resources, early childhood, and youth programs for thousands.
- Growing community grants and technical assistance deepen reservation-wide and at-large engagement.
What critics are saying
- Federal and state jurisdiction fights can disrupt criminal enforcement and planning.
- Large capital projects strain settlement funds and require sustained budget discipline.
- Expanded services create higher compliance burdens across healthcare, justice, and education operations.
What makes Cherokee Nation unique
- Sovereign government with treaty-backed authority, headquartered in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
- Runs integrated justice, education, health, and community services at scale.
- Uses Cherokee-led cultural programming to deliver public services and strengthen identity.
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Funding
Total Funding
$13.1M
Above
Industry Average
Funded Over
2 Rounds
Growth & Insights and Company News
6 month growth
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↑ 14%2 year growth
↑ 14%Cherokee Nation builds treatment center rooted in culture using $150 million opioid settlement. TAHLEQUAH, Oklahoma - In the rolling hills of eastern Oklahoma, where the Cherokee Nation has governed for generations, a new kind of healing is taking shape. Construction crews are putting the finishing touches on a 45,000-square-foot residential treatment center that represents something unprecedented in American addiction care: a facility where recovery is inseparable from cultural reclamation. When the doors open next year, the Cherokee Nation's new behavioral health campus will offer 100 inpatient beds and intensive outpatient services. But what distinguishes this facility from the thousands of treatment centers dotting the American landscape isn't the bed count or the square footage. It's the understanding, honed over centuries of survival and adaptation, that healing happens through connection to identity, community, and tradition. "Culture is such a protective factor," said Juli Skinner, senior director of the Cherokee Nation's behavioral health center and a citizen of the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma. "Historical trauma has hit a lot of people - Native Americans, tribes - hard. Lost language, lost traditional ways, and we'll never get all of that back." From litigation to healing. The $150 million financing this project didn't come from federal grants or tribal gaming revenues. It came from courtrooms. The Cherokee Nation was the first of 575 federally recognized tribes to sue opioid manufacturers in 2017, years before most state governments mounted their own legal challenges. That early action positioned the tribe as a lead plaintiff in negotiations that ultimately yielded roughly $1.3 billion for tribal nations nationwide. Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. frames the litigation as an extension of tribal sovereignty - a refusal to let outside corporations devastate Cherokee communities without consequence. The tribe had watched from the sidelines during the tobacco litigation of the 1990s, and Hoskin vowed that history wouldn't repeat itself. "There will never be another era in which there's some industry that does damage to the Cherokee Nation, damage to the Cherokee people, where we will be bystanders looking for state legislatures, state attorneys general to get us justice," he said. The settlement money comes with strings attached, as it does for states and municipalities. The vast majority must fund opioid remediation - treatment, prevention, recovery support, and harm reduction. But within those constraints, the Cherokee Nation saw an opportunity to address a gap that conventional American healthcare has long failed to close: the disconnect between evidence-based clinical treatment and the cultural frameworks that give recovery meaning. Culture as clinical intervention. Walk through the treatment center's plans, and you won't find the sterile institutional corridors common to residential facilities. Instead, the campus incorporates spaces designed for traditional Cherokee practices. Patients will tend an on-campus garden growing selu, the corn that has sustained Cherokee people for generations. They'll participate in stickball games - the ancient sport sometimes called "the little brother of war" that has served as both physical conditioning and community-building for centuries. These aren't recreational add-ons. They're integrated into the clinical model as therapeutic modalities. The growing body of research on culturally responsive addiction treatment supports this approach: when treatment aligns with a patient's values, identity, and worldview, outcomes improve. For Native Americans, who have faced disproportionate overdose mortality since fentanyl entered the drug supply, culturally grounded care isn't a luxury - it's a clinical necessity. The opioid crisis has devastated Native communities with particular ferocity. While overdose death rates for Native Americans tracked similarly to white Americans during the prescription pill and heroin waves, the arrival of fentanyl created a divergence that has persisted through the pandemic years. Native Americans now experience opioid-related mortality at rates exceeding most other demographic groups, a disparity rooted in historical trauma, geographic isolation, and systemic barriers to healthcare access. Ashley Caudle, a Cherokee Nation citizen who runs a small business in Stilwell, twenty miles east of Tahlequah, witnessed this reality firsthand. She kept free Narcan outside her storefront last year and found herself restocking it weekly, sometimes daily. The demand told a story that statistics only partially capture. A model for settlement fund deployment. The Cherokee Nation's approach offers a potential template for the tens of billions of dollars flowing to state and local governments through opioid litigation. While some jurisdictions have struggled to deploy settlement funds effectively - with money diverted to law enforcement equipment, general budget shortfalls, or programs with tenuous connections to addiction - the tribe's investment represents a direct, transformative response to community need. The 100-bed facility will more than double the tribe's residential treatment capacity. The intensive outpatient hub will provide step-down care and ongoing support, addressing a critical gap in the continuum of services. Too often, patients discharge from residential treatment with nowhere to go, no support system, and no connection to ongoing care. The Cherokee model integrates these services on a single campus, with cultural programming providing the continuity that keeps people engaged. For the approximately 450,000 Cherokee Nation citizens - many concentrated in Oklahoma due to the federal policies that forcibly removed the tribe from its southeastern homeland - the facility represents something beyond healthcare infrastructure. It's a statement about tribal self-determination, about the capacity of Native nations to solve their own challenges using their own frameworks. The broader context. The Cherokee Nation's project arrives at a pivotal moment for American addiction policy. Overdose deaths have declined roughly 19% nationally since their August 2023 peak, driven by expanded naloxone distribution, medication-assisted treatment access, and harm reduction services. But these gains remain fragile, threatened by emerging synthetic drugs, federal funding uncertainty, and the persistent structural barriers that keep most Americans with substance use disorders from receiving any treatment at all. Tribal nations have historically faced these barriers in amplified form. Geographic isolation, workforce shortages, jurisdictional complexities, and underfunded Indian Health Service facilities have created treatment deserts across Indian Country. The opioid settlements have provided tribes with resources to begin addressing these gaps, but the challenge of building sustainable, culturally appropriate systems remains immense. The Cherokee Nation's treatment center won't solve these problems overnight. A 100-bed facility, however well-designed, can't meet the needs of hundreds of thousands of citizens spread across a vast territory. But it establishes a model - one that other tribes, and potentially state and local governments, can adapt to their own contexts. Looking forward. As construction continues toward an anticipated opening in 2027, tribal leaders are already thinking about replication and expansion. The facility's design incorporates feedback from Cherokee citizens in recovery, from behavioral health staff, and from cultural practitioners who understand how traditional practices can support modern therapeutic goals. The integration isn't seamless - it requires ongoing negotiation between clinical protocols and cultural protocols, between federal healthcare regulations and tribal sovereignty. But that negotiation itself represents a kind of healing, a reclaiming of authority over how Cherokee people address the challenges facing their communities. For Juli Skinner, who has spent over a decade working in Cherokee behavioral health, the new facility represents the culmination of a long effort to bring culture into spaces where it had been excluded. "Tribal traditions have given me a healthy way to self-regulate and strengthen my connection with Spirit," she said. Now, that pathway will be available to others seeking their own recovery - not as an alternative to clinical care, but as its essential foundation. The opioid crisis took countless Cherokee lives and threatened to sever the connections that hold the nation together. The response, funded by the very corporations that profited from that devastation, aims to strengthen those connections - one patient, one tradition, one recovery at a time. Editorial Board Editorial review using SAMHSA, CDC, CMS, and state agency sources The NWVCIL editorial team reviews and updates treatment-center information using public data from SAMHSA, CDC, CMS, and state behavioral-health agencies. Nwvcil cross-check facility records, state coverage rules, and clinical-practice updates so the directory reflects current evidence and policy.
Cherokee Nation allocates $400K to animal rescues, accessible vet care. Posted 2:01 PM, Mar 31, 2026 and last updated 3:19 PM, Mar 31, 2026 TAHLEQUAH, Okla. - The Cherokee Nation is launching the Pet Partner Program, dedicating $400,000 to animal welfare. Two rescues were selected to pilot the program: Waymaker Rescue and Kenwood Animal Rescue. Each was awarded $100,000. The other $200,000 will be available for smaller rescues to apply for grants up to $5,000. "I think just about every community has some nonprofit, some effort, that is either trying to get started or already existing that is providing some of these services," said Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. "We want to give them some dollars to do more." Joan Forsyth is the president of Waymaker. She's been in rescue for just two years, with no facility and a small team behind her. They're a donation-based facility, she said, which makes this commitment from the Nation that much more critical. "We are going to set a higher standard in Oklahoma," said Forsyth. "We are going to start making it accessible for citizens, for tribal to get vet care. It's not a luxury that you shouldn't be able to afford. It's a necessity and a responsibility." With the funds, the two pilot rescues will need to hold four spay-and-neuter and vaccination clinics in the community. The idea, the Chief said, is to alleviate the overpopulation issue, while also supporting the work the rescues are already doing. "I get emotional because we've seen so many animals come through our program, and we would hate to stop because we see what we've done in just two years, which is we are just shy of a thousand animals," said Forsyth. "We can only imagine what else is out there and who we can help with. If the Cherokee Nation hadn't gotten behind us, if the funds dry up, we have to stop doing what we're doing. Or do it on a much smaller scale, and we don't want that." The other rescue, Kenwood Animal Rescue, is run by Christy and Anthony Davis. The couple got into rescue ten years ago, and also don't have a facility. "Just our house," said Christy. "We have homemade pens in our backyard, and we've just had to build for each animal that we've caught." Christy said her small community knows who they are, and also supports their efforts through donations. While they take as many animals in as they can, Christy said they also do transports to get animals to a facility where they have a shot at adoption. "We're the ones that get these animals first that are in the deepest pit of hell," she said. "They have mange, they have ticks, they're sick, they're wormy, and it's just heartbreaking. But it's heartwarming when we get that update, 'Hey, he got adopted, or she got adopted.' And the family that's holding them... It's priceless." With the backing of the nation, Anthony said, it just reaffirms the work they've spent a decade doing. "I don't know if you caught it up there, but I about caught tears," said Anthony. "It touches your heart that the Cherokee Nation does so much for the people, but now they're stepping up for the dogs, cats, and we even have a goat." Chief Hoskin explained that the funding comes from the Cherokee Nation Public Health and Wellness Fund Act, which allows them to build clinics and hospitals. "But what it does on this really tiny basis compared to all the other dollars is it allows us to do something for public health, and that is helping people with animals," said Hoskin. "All of this is about health and wellness. It's really a holistic, comprehensive approach. You can't have true wellness in a community unless you make sure we're taking care of pets." Stay in touch with KJRH anytime, anywhere - * 2 News Oklahoma on your schedule | Download on your TV, watch for free. How to watch on your streaming device * Download its free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices. * Like KJRH on Facebook * Follow KJRH on Instagram * Watch LIVE 24/7 on YouTube
Discover more historical Indianz.Com > news > Chuck Hoskin: Cherokee Nation launches unique housing program. Meeting Today's Workforce and Housing Needs Monday, March 23, 2026 By Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. Cherokee Nation The foundation of community strength across the Cherokee Nation Reservation begins with stable, secure housing. Unfortunately, no community large or small is immune to the national housing crisis - a long-term housing shortage that has driven up home prices and pushed homeownership out of reach for many. Today, we are addressing this crisis through visionary actions and innovative growth. Cherokee Nation is the first tribe in the country to implement a skilled worker housing program, uniquely designed to meet one of the most pressing challenges facing our workforce. The effort not only supports needed housing, but it also attracts skilled workers to the jobs and communities where they are needed most. This new approach is one small part of a much larger Cherokee Nation housing effort structured around our recent housing study, which shows $1.75 billion in unmet housing needs across the reservation. The study revealed a spectrum of needs: transitional housing for people experiencing housing insecurity and low- and medium-income housing, including rental properties. Just as important as new housing, the study emphasized rehabilitation and maintenance of existing homes to keep them from falling out of the market due to time and disrepair. The study showed us that there is no silver bullet to fix the housing shortage, but we know all efforts to maintain existing homes and create new housing will alleviate the strain for Cherokee families, no matter their housing status. In recent years, the Cherokee Nation has made the largest housing investment in our history. Through the Housing, Jobs and Sustainable Communities Act, we have directed budget dollars to new construction, rehabilitation, and housing support services across our reservation. Our new HUD 184 Skilled Worker initiative is a small but powerful portion of our overall investment for the Cherokee people. In 2019, we began with a $30 million investment to rehabilitate housing and construct new community gathering spaces for our elders. We expanded these vital efforts in 2022, dedicating $120 million to both new and existing housing programs. Last year, we permanently secured this commitment. By utilizing profits from Cherokee Nation Businesses, in addition to federal funding, we are dedicating $40 million every three years to support housing and community facilities across the reservation. The challenge - other than the daunting amount of housing needed - is to identify efficient methods of housing investment that support our strategic goals. This new program does just that. Through an innovative partnership between the Housing Authority of the Cherokee Nation and our tribal programs, we are leveraging the federal HUD Section 184 Skilled Workers Demonstration Loan Program to construct housing tied directly to our workforce needs. This partnership will provide safe, affordable homes for Cherokee Nation employees in critical fields such as law enforcement, health care, education, language preservation, and other skilled trades. These are positions that are essential for our government to deliver vital services to Cherokees - yet they are often the most difficult to fill. However, we are not gifting homes. The housing remains a Cherokee Nation asset, that may be sold to the tenant at market rate if they remain part of the program. The program is designed like an employee benefit to offer affordable housing with low risk to recruited workers and their families. We began this effort with our Cherokee Nation Marshal Service, in one of the new housing additions that Cherokee Nation is developing in Tahlequah. There are opportunities in other communities like Jay, Sallisaw and Muskogee, where tribal-housing shortages remain critical. That's why new homes are far more than just places to live in: They are strategic tools to recruit, retain and support the dedicated workforce that keeps our communities secure, healthy and growing. We are proud to lead the way with this first-of-its-kind program. We remain steadfast in our commitment to continuing this vital work - building homes, strengthening our communities and families, and keeping our promise to uplift one another. When Cherokee families have a place to call home, our Nation grows stronger for generations to come. Chuck Hoskin Jr. is the 18th elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, the largest Indian tribe in the United States. He is only the second elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation from Vinita, the first being Thomas Buffington, who served from 1899-1903. Prior to being elected Principal Chief, Hoskin served as the tribe's Secretary of State. He also formerly served as a member of the Council of the Cherokee Nation, representing District 11 for six years. Filed Under
Oscar-Nominated actress Lily Gladstone to keynote First Americans Museum gala as 2026 honourees announced. The First Americans Museum (FAM) has announced that Oscar-nominated actress Lily Gladstone will deliver the keynote address at its annual Where Earth Meets Sky gala, set to take place on 1 May in Oklahoma City. The high-profile event, which celebrates Indigenous culture, leadership and artistic achievement, will also honour a group of influential figures and institutions whose work has made a significant contribution to Native communities and cultural preservation. The keynote presentation will be supported by Parrish DeVaughn Injury Lawyers, the official sponsor for the evening's address. Gladstone, who is a member of the Blackfeet and Nez Perce Tribal Nations, will headline the gala alongside the 2026 award recipients, each recognised for their contributions to Indigenous arts, language revitalisation and community knowledge. The awards programme highlights individuals and organisations advancing Indigenous heritage through contemporary arts, traditional practices, language preservation and education. Among those honoured is Raven Halfmoon of the Caddo Nation, who will receive the Benjamin Harjo Jr. Excellence in Contemporary Arts Award. Halfmoon is widely recognised for her striking ceramic sculptures and contributions to contemporary Native art. Vanessa Paukeigope Jennings, representing the Kiowa Tribe, Ná'ishą Apache and Gila River Pima communities, will receive the Enoch Kelly Haney Excellence in Traditional Arts Award in recognition of her work preserving and promoting traditional cultural practices. The Cherokee Nation Language Department will be presented with the Governor Bill Anoatubby Culture Protector Award for its work safeguarding and revitalising the Cherokee language through educational initiatives and community programmes. Meanwhile, Dr. Dolores BigFoot of the Caddo Nation will receive the Dr. Henrietta Mann Knowledge Keeper Award, acknowledging her longstanding commitment to Indigenous knowledge, mental health advocacy and community leadership. "We are honored to welcome Lily Gladstone to Oklahoma City," said gala committee chair Debbie Lindsey (Muscogee Nation). "Lily's presence, alongside the legacies of our 2026 honorees, underscores FAM's mission to uplift Indigenous knowledge and visionary leadership. We are equally proud of the diversity among our early sponsors whose support makes this celebration possible." Gladstone's rising global profile. Gladstone's participation adds international prominence to the event following a landmark year in her acting career. She became the first Native American to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, earning global recognition for her performance in Martin Scorsese's historical drama Killers of the Flower Moon. The role also secured her the 2023 Golden Globe for Best Actress and a Screen Actors Guild Award in 2024. Beyond film accolades, Gladstone's achievements reflect a wider cultural impact. She is a member of the Women's Stand Up Headdress Society, regarded as one of the highest honours within the Blackfeet Nation. Her screen career spans several acclaimed film and television productions, including Fancy Dance, the award-winning series Reservation Dogs, and the drama Under the Bridge. In a notable fusion of fashion and cultural craftsmanship, Gladstone's Academy Awards gowns - created through a collaboration between Ironhorse Quill Work and luxury fashion house Gucci - are currently on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Supporting education, culture and environmental stewardship. While the gala celebrates individual achievements, organisers say the event also serves as a platform to support broader educational and cultural initiatives at the museum. This year's theme, Dáumàuiáum Dàu:k'í:, a Kiowa phrase meaning "divine bond & balance to creation," reflects a focus on sustainability, learning and Indigenous stewardship. Funds and awareness generated through the gala will support three key priorities for the museum. The first initiative aims to revitalise the FAM Mound, transforming it into a living pollinator landscape designed according to Indigenous environmental practices. A second focus is expanding access to FAMcamps and school field trips for children across Oklahoma, helping introduce younger generations to Indigenous history, culture and heritage. The third priority involves strengthening year-round educational programming, including the TEK Fest and the museum's FAMily Discovery Center, both designed to promote community engagement and hands-on learning. Final sponsorship opportunities. Organisers say the gala continues to attract support from corporate and institutional partners seeking to align their brands with Indigenous leadership and storytelling. With preparations under way for the May event, the museum confirmed that a limited number of sponsorship opportunities remain available. Organisations interested in supporting the event have been encouraged to finalise commitments before 15 April, ensuring participation in what organisers describe as a landmark gathering of Native leaders, artists and cultural advocates. The annual gala has become a flagship event for the First Americans Museum, highlighting the role of Indigenous voices in shaping contemporary cultural dialogue while supporting educational programmes and community initiatives across Oklahoma. "Freelance twitter advocate. Hardcore food nerd. Avid writer. Infuriatingly humble problem solver." Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Cherokee Nation awarded nearly $773K for Illinois River Watershed conservation planning. The Cherokee Nation will receive $772,914 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to develop a comprehensive conservation and restoration plan for the Illinois River Watershed. The funding awarded through the America's Ecosystem Restoration Initiative will enable the tribe to lead a two-year planning project, bringing together partners across Oklahoma and Arkansas to address critical conservation needs within the watershed. Cherokee Nation is among 77 grantees nationwide selected for the program, which supports community-driven efforts to restore habitats, strengthen ecosystems, improve public access to natural areas, and promote partnership-based conservation. "The Illinois River is a treasured natural resource that sustains our communities, supports our economy, and holds deep cultural significance for the Cherokee people," said Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. "This planning project will allow us to work collaboratively with our partners to develop a roadmap for protecting this vital watershed for generations to come. It reflects our commitment to being responsible stewards of the land and water within our ancestral territory." The Cherokee Nation Illinois River Watershed Conservation and Restoration Partnership project, administered by the Cherokee Nation Office of the Secretary of Natural Resources, will engage partners across jurisdictions to develop implementation plans addressing multiple conservation priorities. Working with organizations and agencies in Oklahoma and Arkansas, as well as federal partners, Cherokee Nation will focus on designated scenic and impaired sub-watersheds of the Illinois River. "Our elders have always taught us that water is life, and protecting the Illinois River means protecting our future," said Deputy Chief Bryan Warner. "This approach to conservation planning ensures we're not just addressing today's challenges but building long-term solutions to benefit our children and our communities for years to come." The planning project will establish frameworks for a Riparian Restoration Program, an Unpaved Roads Program, Habitat and Wetlands Restoration projects, Public Access Expansion and Improvement projects, and Community Education and Outreach programming. "This planning project reflects Cherokee Nation's deep commitment to protecting the Illinois River and the culturally significant species that depend on it," said Cherokee Nation Secretary of Natural Resources Christina Justice. "By bringing together landowners, partner organizations, and our neighboring jurisdictions, we're building a shared path forward for restoration, resiliency, and responsible access." The Illinois River serves as a major economic driver for recreation while holding critical importance for Cherokee ways of life and culturally significant species. Through this project, Cherokee Nation will focus on protecting these species and their habitats through watershed-scale interventions. The Riparian Restoration Program will engage directly with landowners to restore habitat along streams and rivers throughout the watershed. The Unpaved Roads program will develop training curriculum focused on Best Management Practices to reduce sediment loading, lower road maintenance costs, and prioritize barrier removal for improved aquatic passage. Public Access Improvement projects will implement recommendations from the Conservation-based Recreation Master Plan developed by the Illinois River Watershed Partnership, an official project partner. Cultural educational enhancements will be incorporated into design plans. Community Engagement projects will develop educational programming and materials targeted to Cherokee citizens, including specific outreach to Cherokee women. By engaging landowners, community members, and Cherokee youth in conservation efforts, the project will enhance transparency, accountability, and environmental stewardship practices. The plans developed during the planning phase will prepare projects for implementation and long-term environmental sustainability. For more information about Cherokee Nation's Natural Resources Department, visit https://naturalresources.cherokee.org/. - Cherokee Nation
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About Cherokee Nation
Industries
Government & Public Sector
Company Size
1,001-5,000
Company Stage
Grant
Total Funding
$13.1M
Headquarters
Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Founded
N/A
There are no jobs for Cherokee Nation right now.
Find jobs on Simplify and start your career today