Our People

Experience, expertise, dedication – meet the Falmouth team working to
strengthen the tribes and tribal organizations of Indian Country.

Adam Bailey

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Raymond Bantum

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Denise Brinkley

Accounting/Office Manager

Melanie Burkhart

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Karla Bylund

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Julia Coates, Ph.D.

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Ed Felker

Designer/Web Manager

Linée Ferguson

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

John Friel

Director of Financial Services

Marissa Gehley

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Jon Grant

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Lisa Harjo

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

James Harrison

Customer Care Representative

Sam Hill

Learning and Development Consultant

Joe Hobot

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Lisa Jaeger

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Kostan Lathouris

Senior Law and Governance Analyst

Sarah Lawson

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Erin Levant

Curriculum and Instruction Specialist

Jeffrey S. Marciano

President/CEO

Brian Mathers

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Dawn McKeever

Marketing Manager

Desiree McPherson

Curriculum Development Specialist

Mekko Miller

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Wes Miller

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Jennifer Newton

Director of Training Administration

Stephen D. Osborne

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Patina Park

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Brian Pearson

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Terry Rainey

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Lisa Riggleman

Director, Learning and Development

Harold Rivkin

Director of Background and Adjudication Services

Eduardo Sanchez

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Niki Sandoval

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Anita Shah

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Kurt Tucker

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Evelina Y-Maho

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Stephanie Zehren

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adam Bailey

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adam Bailey, an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, joined the law firm Hobbs Straus as an associate in February 2013. He is a 2011 graduate of the UCLA School of Law, where he received his J.D. with a specialization in Critical Race Studies. During law school, Mr. Bailey was an active member and officer of NALSA. He worked on UCLA’s Journal of Environmental Law and Policy and the Dukeminier Awards Journal on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and the Law. Mr. Bailey was a term-time clerk for the Hualapai Court of Appeals and the Hopi Tribal Appeals Court. He was also a member of the UCLA Law Review, where he was selected to be a Senior Editor. He authored his student note entitled Threading the Needle: The Fort Peck Tribe’s Associate Membership: A Modern Model for Tribal Affiliation.

Mr. Bailey has returned to Hobbs Straus, having worked for four years in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office as a legislative specialist before enrolling in law school. Prior to his previous work at the firm he served as a legislative associate for the National Congress of American Indians. Immediately after graduation from the UCLA School of Law, Mr. Bailey practiced labor and employment law for Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton.

Mr. Bailey graduated with honors from Harvard University. His thesis exploring President Clinton’s executive order on tribal consultation received magna cum laude.

Mr. Bailey enjoys fishing and hunting, hiking, cooking, traveling, keeping current on news and politics.

Raymond Bantum

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Mr. Bantum is the President of Bantum Consulting Services, which specializes in providing Information Technology consulting services to faith based, non-profit, for profit, governmental and healthcare organizations. He has over 25 years of accounting and technology consulting experience, including experience in providing consulting, database and forensic accounting services to the healthcare industry. Mr. Bantum is a CPA, a CITP (Certified Information Technology Professional) and a CMC (Certified Management Consultant). He has served in the U.S. Air Force and received a Top Secret Security clearance while in service to his country. He was also an auditor with the accounting firm of Deloitte and Touche. He is a member of the AICPA, the Maryland Association of CPA’s, and the National Association of Black Accountants.

Denise Brinkley

Accounting/Office Manager

Denise Brinkley has spent over 30 years in the accounting/office manager roll, 15 of those years with Falmouth Institute. Denise manages all the accounts receivable/payables, as well as maintains the upkeep of the office.

Denise is originally from Louisiana but has most recently moved from Virginia to Texas. When not working you can find her outdoors near water (beach or lake) always with a good book to read.

Melanie Burkhart

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Melanie Burkhart, OD Specialist II and National Strategy Manager for the Oneida Tribe of Indians of WI, brings over 18 years of experience working within the Tribal Structure. She worked for many years in the Human Resource field specializing in interviewing, project management, facilitation, team building, consensus building, and conflict resolution. As the National Strategy Manager she worked closely with Executive and Divisional level staff with their strategy execution, including developing objectives, measures and implementation. Her current role is with the Oneida Business Committee, helping with their reorganization efforts and reviewing strategy, vision and mission. She has been conducting orientation with newly elected Business Committee members for the past 12 years.

Ms. Burkhart has many years of experience working on organizational development projects, including HRIS system implementation, policy analysis, compensation study, and most recently Balanced Scorecard. She has a BA in Business Management and Communications and an MA in Organizational Behavior.

Karla Bylund

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Karla Bylund, a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, founded Soaring Bird Solutions in 2015. Soaring Bird Solutions is a Native American Woman-owned consulting firm which provides professional Human Resource consulting services including HR outsourcing and special projects such as compensation and organizational analysis, human resource audit and assistance, policy review, employee relations investigations, engagement surveys, career development and customized training.

She has over 25 years’ experience in Human Resources and has worked with over 30 Tribal Nations. Her credentials include:

Bachelor of Business Administration, University of Phoenix
Master of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Kansas State University
Certificate in Diversity and Inclusion, Cornell University
Senior Human Resource Certification, Society for Human Resource Management
Speaker, National Native American Human Resource Association
Speaker, National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development
Speaker, TribalNet Annual Conference
Adjunct Instructor, Falmouth Institute

Julia Coates

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Julia Coates is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. Born in Pryor, Oklahoma and raised in northern California, she holds BAs in Anthropology and English from San Francisco State University, and a PhD in American Studies from the University of New Mexico. She has worked for Native American non-profits, tribal governments, and non-governmental organizations. Dr. Coates was a delegate to the Cherokee Nation Constitutional convention, was the Project Director for the award-winning Cherokee Nation History Course, and served two terms on the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council. She has worked on research, grant writing, and conference production for the American Indian Studies Center at UCLA, and presently is an adjunct professor of American Indian subject courses in the Social Sciences division at Pasadena City College. She also co-founded the Cherokee PINS Project: Education and Engagement for Sovereignty, a non-profit dedicated to building civic engagement within Cherokee communities and bridging the divides between the Cherokee citizens within and outside the tribal boundary.

Ed Felker

Designer/Web Manager

Ed Felker has spent the majority of his 30-year graphic design career with The Falmouth Institute. As designer and web manager, Ed is responsible for maintaining the Falmouth brand, creating compelling marketing materials, and managing the company’s web site.

A writer, photographer and outdoorsman, Ed can most often be found outdoors near his Virginia home overlooking the Potomac River, usually with a camera, often with a fly rod, always with a dog.

Linée Ferguson

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

With more than 20 years’ experience in Human Resources management, Linée Ferguson’s expertise includes HR startups, recruiting strategy, compensation, coaching leaders through difficult employee issues and implementing HR Technology. For 11 years, Ms. Ferguson was the Human Resources Manager for the Education Division of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. Ultimately, Ms. Ferguson’s mission is to help build extraordinary organizations that fulfill their potential. In pursuit of this mission, she launched Master the Workplace, LLC in 2013, a firm dedicated to promoting and helping businesses achieve success through effective people management practices.

Ms. Ferguson is a trained mediator, certified background investigation adjudicator and certified workplace financial education trainer. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems and a Master’s degree in Urban Studies (Human Resources concentration) – both from Georgia State University. She also holds the Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) designation. Ms. Ferguson serves on the City of Mesa’s Merit System Board in Arizona.

John Friel

Director of Financial Services

John Friel, CPA, is Director of Financial Services with the Falmouth Institute, where he provides a wide range of financial management services to tribal governments. Mr. Friel leads the team that prepares and negotiates indirect cost proposals for hundreds of Falmouth IDC clients. Other services include: training, internal controls analysis, cost allocation policy facilitation and corrective action plans in response to audit findings issued in accordance with single audits.

Mr. Friel achieved the status of master trainer due to his outstanding achievements in workshop presentation and methodology. He has consistently demonstrated an understanding and sensitivity to the issues faced by attendees in the workshops he conducts.

Marissa Gehley

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Marissa J. Gehley is the founder of KNOW consulting, Kids Need Our Wisdom. She has more than 30 years of experience in education as a former teacher, counselor, child welfare and attendance specialist and coordinator of school safety and the Burbank OutReach Center. Additionally she is a trainer for the California School/Law Enforcement Partnership.

Ms. Gehley is proud to have contributed to several articles published in the nationally syndicated column “A+ Advice for Parents” by Leanna Landsmann. She has presented hundreds of workshops for community leaders, educators, parents and students in areas such as bully awareness/prevention, suicide prevention, effective communication techniques, school and neighborhood safety, diversity, relationship violence, child abuse and neglect and developing effective community partnerships. She holds a BS in history and social science and an MA in counseling.

Jon Grant

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

As a Grant Writer and Project Manager, Jon Grant develops funding programs for Indian tribes. With more than 24 years of experience in Grant Writing, Project Development and Program Management, Mr. Grant has been an adjunct instructor for Falmouth since 2004. Prior to his current position, he most recently worked for Dry Creek Rancheria in Healdsburg, California as the grant and Contract Writer, where he was responsible for new grant development, BIA 638 contract negotiation and compliance, and assisted in assuring grant compliance with agency requirements and OMB Circulars. He has successfully written grant applications for: U.S. Dept of Energy; U.S. Dept of Justice (BJA, TCAP and OJJDP); U.S. Dept of Interior (BIA and NPS); Institute of Museum and Library Services; U.S. Dept of Education; U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services (ACF, ANA, Children’s Bureau, SAMHSA); U.S. Dept of Agriculture (Rural Development); U.S. Dept of Transportation; U.S. Dept of Commerce (Economic Development Administration); State of California (Caltrans and Office of Emergency Services).

Mr. Grant has been a Project Director for two medium sized substance abuse prevention programs and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs for American Indian tribes. His background also includes child welfare and juvenile justice services. He has extensive experience in Social Services including TANF and Child Welfare development including the development of four TANF programs and three child welfare systems. He also assisted in the development of three tribal courts.

Mr. Grant holds a B.S. in Psychology from Missouri State University. He is committed to continually upgrading and expanding his skills and plans to complete his Master’s Degree in Public Administration.

Lisa Harjo

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Lisa Harjo works as the Executive Director for Native American Cancer Research. She is the Principal Investigator on a project with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and provides administrative leadership and oversight for the organization. She supervises staff and maintains all corporate documents and standards. She also provides health education, training, recruits American Indians for cancer screening, and supports cancer survivors through education and outreach in the Denver Metro Area.

After receiving her Bachelors of Science in Native American Education and Child Development in 1974, Ms. Harjo spent the next twenty years teaching all ages from preschool through higher education. She also worked for many years in the field of non-profit organization management and development. She received her Masters of Education in Elementary Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Colorado at Denver in the early nineties. She co-authored several books in the field of education. She has worked for decades with American Indian tribes and other organizations, facilitating group meetings and trainings, and assisting communities in building consensus and unity of visions.

Ms. Harjo lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband, three daughters, grandson, and three granddaughters.

James Harrison

Customer Care Representative

With over 4 years of customer service experience, James is excited to bring his customer centric approach to our Customer Care team. He will be helping you navigate your way through courses, questions, and concerns you may have.

James is originally from Virginia but has had the opportunity to move around outside of his hometown. When not working you can find him watching some sporting event, pretty much anything but NASCAR, or outside playing with his kids.

Sam Hill

Learning and Development Consultant

Sam Hill grew up in the Hill Country area of central Texas.

He majored in Literature and Creative Writing at Texas State University, the same school that President Lyndon B. Johnson attended as well as the 'King of Country Music' George Strait.

His literary work has appeared in various publications, including Persona; the arts & literary magazine of Texas State University, and SXSWorld Magazine, the official magazine of the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas. He has also had the privilege of interviewing prominent figures for articles, such as the rapper Logic, Native American musical artist Black Belt Eagle Scout, and London Mayor Sadiq Kahn, & numerous
others.

For the past decade Sam has been working for the Legislature of the State of Texas providing Training and Instructional Design consulting.

When not behind a desk, Sam can be found behind an easel working on an oil painting, at a live music show, or on the hiking trails in his beloved Arizona, but more than likely he is enjoying the constant company of a furry, four-legged friend.

He joined the Falmouth Institute in the summer of 2022.

Joe Hobot

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Dr. Joe Hobot is a descendant of the Hunkpapa Band of the Lakota Nation from the Standing Rock Indian Reservation and was born and raised in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Minnesota, a Master’s Degree from the University of St. Thomas, and a Doctorate of Education from Hamline University.

He is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Indian OIC, having served with the organization since 2006. He previously held the position of Director of Education, overseeing the progress of the organization’s alternative high school, its Adult Basic Education/GED program, and the Takoda Institute of Higher Education. He also served as the Lead Teacher of Takoda Prep with an emphasis on Social Studies, and as an Instructor in the AIOIC post-secondary school as well.

Dr. Hobot was recently appointed by Governor Mark Dayton to serve on the Minnesota Jobs Skills Partnership’s board of directors. He is also a director on the boards of the Native American Community Development Institute, the Women’s Environmental Institute, chairs the Metropolitan Urban Indian Directors group, and is a member of Equity Works. He is the 2015 recipient of the Minnesota American Indian Chamber of Commerce’s Bear Award and was named a 2016 40 Under 40 by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. Most recently, Dr. Hobot became a fellow through the Roy Wilkins Center for Human Relations and Social Justice at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. In August 2018, Dr. Hobot was selected by the Aspen Institute for an Aspen Institute Ascend Fellowship.

Lisa Jaeger

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Lisa Jaeger has served as the tribal government specialist for the Tanana Chiefs Conference in Fairbanks Alaska since 1979. The Tanana Chiefs is a non-profit Native corporation that provides technical assistance and service delivery to 37 federally recognized tribes in the Interior of Alaska. She has traveled extensively into the villages of the Interior and other parts of Alaska assisting tribes in designing tribal government structures and procedures; drafting constitutions, ordinances, codes, and policies; and assisting tribes on land issues and in the development of their tribal courts.

Ms. Jaeger has also been incredibly involved in the development of Circle Peacemaking in Alaska and collaborative efforts between the Alaska Court System and Alaska tribal courts. She teaches Indian law and tribal government courses for the University of Alaska, National Judicial College and through a wide variety of other collaborative training efforts. She has written handbooks for Alaska tribes on tribal government, code drafting, Alaska Native lands, and tribal court development. Ms. Jaeger is the producer of multiple films on tribal court development for Alaska tribes, such as the documentary film entitled, "Tribal Nations, The Story of Federal Indian Law." And a 60-minute documentary film called "Alaska Tribes: The Story of Federal Indian Law in Alaska in 2012,". She also produced a website on Federal Indian Law in Alaska in collaboration with the University of Alaska.

Ms. Jaeger has undergraduate degrees in biology and secondary education and a master’s degree in Northern Studies-Indian Law from the Universities of Arizona and Alaska.

Kostan Lathouris

Senior Law and Governance Analyst

Kostan R. Lathouris, an enrolled member and former elected Tribal Council Member of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe, is an adjunct instructor and the Senior Law and Governance Analyst for Falmouth Institute, Inc.

He is the managing member of Lathouris Law PLLC, a law practice dedicated to asserting and defending tribal sovereignty through tribal law development and litigation. He received his Juris Doctor from the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (“UNLV”) in 2015 and his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, as a University Honors Scholar, from UNLV in 2009. He is a member of both the State Bars of Nevada and California, and is admitted to practice in multiple federal, tribal, and state courts.

In association with Rapport & Marston, Kostan served on the legal team for the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe, whereupon the Tribe was able to successfully obtain a federal court decision that the land in question was within the boundaries of the Tribe’s reservation and was therefore Indian country.

Kostan helped represent several federally recognized tribes as part of tribal-state gaming compact negotiations with the State of California. He also served on the tribes’ legal team in the both the subsequent district court litigation. The Tribes prevailed on their motion for summary judgment against the State of California.

In addition, he is the current Chair of the Nevada Indian Commission, a state agency that effectively serves as a liaison between the State of Nevada and the federally recognized Tribes in the State.

Sarah Lawson

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Sarah Lawson is an attorney with Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt. She focuses her practice on Indian law, with over a decade of experience advising tribal governments on a variety of matters including real estate, land use planning and development, and tax. Ms. Lawson is widely regarded as an authority on issues involving Indian trust land, and has increasingly been assisting tribes with Alaskan trust land and the BIA. She is an enrolled member of the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska.
Ms. Lawson began her work in Indian Country as in intern with the Assembly of First Nations in Canada, where her research on Indian residential school abuse and impacts laid the groundwork for the Indian Residential Settlement Agreement (IRSSA). During law school she was a law clerk for the Oneida Indian Tribe of Wisconsin and the Native American Rights Fund in Washington D.C., where she worked on the Indian trust class action suit Cobell v. Salazar.

Ms. Lawson serves as an appellate judge for the Northwest Intertribal Court System and has taught courses on the history of federal Indian policy, rights of tribes, Indian self-determination, and legal studies for Northwest Indian College. She is as a member of the boards of the Northwest Indian Bar Association, National Tribal Land Association, and is past president of the board of directors for Red Eagle Soaring Native Youth Theater.

Prior to joining Schwabe, Lawson served as General Counsel for the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe, Trust Services Director for the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, and Assistant Attorney General for the Tohono O'Odham Nation in Sells, Arizona. Lawson received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Wisconsin, and is admitted to practice in Washington, Wisconsin and Arizona.

Erin Levant

Curriculum and Instruction Specialist

Erin Levant comes to the Falmouth Institute from the field of education, with thirteen years of international classroom, training, and supervisory experience. Erin's expertise includes curriculum creation, instructional design, project management, and cross-cultural communication. Erin is excited to join the Learning and Development team and to ensure quality content and learning for the Falmouth community.

Jeff Marciano

President/CEO

Mr. Marciano is a highly skilled, hands-on business executive with expertise in the development and delivery of training and consulting projects for Tribal organizations throughout North America. He has served Indian Country for over 30 years, helping Tribes address the challenges posed by self governance issues.

In his capacity as CEO/President, he is responsible for developing and implementing all short-and long-term strategic initiatives for all phases of Falmouth Institute, including, the development and delivery of comprehensive training and consulting services. In his previous roles with Falmouth, he served as the Editor of the Native American Law Digest, Publisher of the American Indian Report, a Curriculum Development Specialist, Marketing and Business Development coordinator and Vice President of Operations.

Mr. Marciano is an alumnus of Syracuse University where he majored in Political Science and minored in Constitutional Law. He is married to his college sweetheart, Angie, and together they have two wonderful children, Emily and John. He has served on a number of community association boards, including the Southwestern Youth Association, Cardinal Lacrosse and the Brown University Women’s Lacrosse Association. In his spare time, Jeff loves traveling with his family, skiing, coaching lacrosse, boating and playing ice hockey.

Brian Mathers

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Brian Mathers is the Executive Director of the HoChunk Community Development Corporation, a non-profit affiliated with the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. He has been an Adjunct Faculty member for the Falmouth Institute since 2014. He has more than 30 years' experience in community development, non-profit management, social services, and educational settings. Mathers provides training and technical assistance in the areas of Grant Writing, Tribal Grants Management, Financial Literacy, Case Management, Strategic Planning, and other topics.

Dawn McKeever

Marketing Manager

Dawn McKeever has more than 30 years of marketing experience, 20 of those managing Falmouth Institute’s marketing efforts. Dawn’s expertise includes marketing communication, content development, email marketing, strategic planning, social media, website management and marketing analysis.

Desiree McPherson

Curriculum Development Specialist

For 3 years, Desiree has been looking at ways she can make a difference for customers, her colleagues, and Falmouth Institute. Starting a position with Falmouth Institute as a Customer Care Representative, she is now a part of our Curriculum Development Team. Desiree is excited to share the responsibility of ensuring that learning and development needs are met in compliance with policy and strategic objective.

Mekko Miller

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

The Hon. Mekko M. Miller currently serves as the presiding judge for the Pueblo of San Felipe Contemporary Tribal Court and as the Chief Judge for the Pueblo de San Ildefonso in New Mexico and as pro tem judge for the Pueblos of Pojoaque, Santa Ana and Nambe. Prior to being appointed to the bench in his respective jurisdictions, Judge Miller served in a variety of leadership and legal representative roles in service to tribal governments, tribal businesses and individual tribal citizens. As an attorney Judge Miller has assisted tribes in numerous legal matters, including the creation of tribal agencies and programs, state-tribal gaming compact negotiations and cultural properties claims. Judge Miller has had the privilege to work as an attorney for the New Mexico Legal Aid, Inc. (NMLA) a non-profit legal services law firm dedicated to representing indigent families and individuals in the state of New Mexico. As an attorney for NMLA, Judge Miller worked in the firm’s Native American Program and practiced in numerous tribal courts and in state court representing Native American individuals and families in matters involving Federal Indian Law, child welfare, public benefits, consumer protection, civil rights and criminal defense. Judge Miller has been recognized nationally for his efforts to reduce and study the impact of Native American defendants’ terms of incarceration in the Federal Court system compared to other groups by his appointment to the U.S. Sentencing Commission’s Tribal Issues Advisory Group (TIAG).

Judge Miller is a proud citizen of the Pueblo of Tesuque in beautiful northern New Mexico with shared ancestry in the Muscogee Nation of Oklahoma. He received his undergraduate degree with a B.A. in Political Science from New Mexico State University in 1999 and his J.D. from the University of Wyoming College of Law in 2003. Judge Miller is a licensed attorney in New Mexico and in several tribal court jurisdictions throughout the United States. Judge Miller resides primarily in Albuquerque, NM with his wife, daughter and his neighbor’s numerous cats.

Wes Miller

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

An independent trainer, mediator and professional speaker, Wes Miller applies more than 25 years’ experience in the fields of Human Resources and Mediation to a consulting practice specializing in mediation, customer service, team building, business communication, management skills and leadership practices. During the recent foreclosure crisis, he was appointed by the Nevada Supreme Court to mediate home owners and lenders. Additionally, he has successfully run a mediation practice that offering divorce, victim-offender, employment and business mediation. Throughout his career, he has designed and delivered a number of training efforts for organizations in the gaming, hospitality and retail industries and has assisted a number of startup and existing operations establish successful management and customer relations policies and procedures.

Jennifer Newton

Director of Training Administration

Ms. Newton has over 20 years of experience planning and delivering trainings in Indian Country. She is intimately familiar with the life cycle of training events and is responsible for the logistics and administration of all virtual and in-person training seminars. She oversees a team of training specialists to ensure seamless planning, delivery, and evaluation of programs. She is a skilled professional well versed in all aspects of training administration.

Stephen D. Osborne

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Steve Osborne is an attorney and partner in the Portland, Oregon office of Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker, LLP. He works with tribes on issues arising from the negotiation, performance, and enforcement of tribal contracts and compacts under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act. He also works on tribal jurisdictional issues, economic development, administrative law, and litigation. Mr. Osborne has provided technical support to national tribal-federal workgroups addressing tribal self-governance, contract support costs, transportation issues, and data management. Over the last 15 years, Mr. Osborne has helped many tribes and tribal organizations obtain court rulings and settlements establishing important legal rights and obtaining substantial financial recoveries, including some 70 contract support cost settlements with the Indian Health Service totaling over $200 million.

Mr. Osborne’s published articles include The History, Status, and Future of Tribal Self-Governance Under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act in the American Indian Law Review (with Geoff Strommer) and Placing Land Into Trust in Alaska: Issues and Opportunities in the American Indian Law Journal (with Geoff Strommer and Craig Jacobson). Prior to law school, Mr. Osborne taught writing and literature courses at the university level for 15 years and served as the technical editor for the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality.

Patina Park

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Patina Park is Mnicoujou Lakota and her family comes from the Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Sioux Tribes. She currently serves as President/CEO of the Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center (MIWRC), a culturally grounded nonprofit agency dedicated to providing holistic, multi-service programming grounded in traditional teachings and values that help to heal, preserve, and strengthen Native American women and their families from the multi-generational trauma impact of colonization. Because of her own experiences as an adoptee, Ms. Park is particularly passionate about issues related to Native American children and families. Upon graduating from Hamline Law School in 2001, Ms. Park focused her early legal career on advocating for Native American families involved in child protection and private custody cases.

Ms. Park co-authored “Best Outcomes for Indian Children, Child Welfare” in the Journal of Policy, Practice, and Program Volume 91(3)(2012), and “The Impact of Health Equity Coaching on Patient’s Perceptions of Cultural Competency and Communication in a Pediatric Emergency Department: An Intervention Design”.

Ms. Park previously served as an appellate court judge for the Prairie Island Sioux Community and taught Children and the Law and Federal Indian Law at the former Hamline University School of Law, now Mitchell Hamline School of Law.

Brian Pearson

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

As a long-time Las Vegas local, Brian Pearson has spent the last 20 years working with technology to get the most out of office automation. Brian earned his Bachelor’s degree and Master's degree from the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He has been instructing classes in Microsoft Office, Network Security, Records Retention and Electronic Document Management for Falmouth for the past seven years. He is a devoted husband and father of three small children. He enjoys spending time with his children and working with computers.

Terry Rainey

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Terry Rainey is the President of Ink Impressions, Inc. and its Automated Election Services division. With more than 14 years of service, he has seen the company through its evolution from a business forms manufacturer and distributor to its position today as a nationally known provider of automated election, enrollment, voter registration and security data management products and services to public, private and Native American organizations. He has supervised the management of over 700 elections in the public and private sectors and has supervised the design and installation of over 30 of the company’s enrollment and database management applications.

Lisa Riggleman

Director, Learning and Development

As the Director of Learning and Development, Lisa Riggleman is responsible for leading the design and delivery process of culturally-appropriate, business related training initiatives for Falmouth Institute. She has worked and traveled extensively in Indian Country for nearly 30 years. Lisa has decades of experience in the nonprofit, education and gaming professions. Most recently, she held senior leadership positions with The Mob Museum and The Neon Museum-both in Las Vegas. She is an avid volunteer and serves on the board of various Las Vegas nonprofits. She earned a Master of Arts in journalism and telecommunications from the University of Wyoming and a Bachelor of Science in journalism and broadcasting from West Texas A&M University as well as post graduate studies and a human resources certification at The University of Nevada Las Vegas.

Harold Rivkin

Director of Background and Adjudication Services

Mr. Rivkin has is the Consulting Services Manager for Falmouth Institute, an American Indian Consulting firm based in Fairfax Virginia and facilitates educational classes in Indian Country. He has been with Falmouth for the last seventeen years.

Mr. Rivkin, a former Chief of Police with a suburban Chicago Police Department and former Corporate Director of Assets Protection for a major Wisconsin retail organization, has been a member of the Fox Valley ASIS Chapter since 1979. He held several offices including President of the local ASIS chapter. Through ASIS he obtained the designation of Certified Protection Professional (CPP) which he maintained for over twenty years. Mr. Rivkin has served as a Door County Sheriff Reserve Deputy for five years. Mr. Rivkin has also served on the executive board of Crime Stoppers for ten years, and as President of Green Bay Area Crime Stoppers chapter. Mr. Rivkin is the owner and operator of Assets Protection Solutions, LLC, a Private Security Consulting firm based out of Door County Wisconsin.

Eduardo Sanchez

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Eduardo Sanchez has over 25 years of experience in Health Information Administration with various healthcare facilities. He is currently the Regional Director of Health Information Management and Privacy Officer for nine (9) hospitals scattered throughout the Southeast U.S.. He has experience in implementing electronic patient care records and other various healthcare systems.

Mr. Sanchez's expertise is coding and billing functions, HIPAA policies, and the appropriate release of patient care information, along with other aspects in patient information administration. He received his Bachelor of Science Degree from Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, California, and his Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Phoenix. Credentials are: (RHIA)-Registered Health Information Administrator, (CCS)-Certified Coding Specialist, and (CHP)–Certified HIPAA Professional.

Niki Sandoval

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Dr. Sandoval is the Education Director for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians and a Continuing Lecturer in UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz Graduate School of Education. She is a Trustee of the Santa Barbara Foundation and has served two terms as a member of the California State Board of Education (2013-2020). Her career began at the J. Paul Getty Museum of Art and continued at the Smithsonian Institution, where she held the position of Assistant Director of Community Services for the National Museum of the American Indian. Dr. Sandoval holds a Ph.D. in Education from UCSB, M.A. in Museum Studies from the George Washington University and a B.A. in Public Relations from Pepperdine University.

Anita Shah

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Anita Shah is a Senior Manager with Moss Adams LLP’s Tribal Services Group. Ms. Shah has practiced public accounting since 2008 and has been working exclusively with Tribal governments since 2009. She specializes in financial statement audits and single audits under the standards required by OMB for Tribal governments. Ms. Shah also has experience working with Tribal housing authorities, health facilities, schools, casinos, and other Tribal enterprises. Having served various Tribal governments and their enterprises throughout the country, Ms. Shah is able to provide valuable insight and best practice recommendations to Tribes about their internal controls, policies and procedures, and overall operational improvements to better serve their membership. Additionally, as part of providing audit services, Ms. Shah has technical expertise in the laws and regulations of GASB, GAGAS (“Yellow Book”), and OMB Single Audit, to provide clients with useful and timely recommendations to help them successfully implement new standards and remain in compliance with applicable requirements.

Kurt Tucker

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Kurt Tucker is a partner with the Michigan firm of Midwest Professionals. For the Falmouth Institute, he consults with tribes in the areas of accounting and auditing. Kurt specializes in conducting training sessions in the Finance arena, including OMB Circular compliance, Indirect Cost Proposal preparation and Understanding Federal Travel Regulations. Mr. Tucker spent many years as a staff CPA, conducting and participating in tribal audits for over 20 tribes. He worked extensively in a partnership with Egghardt and Associates, where he participated in tribal audits. After spending several years as an independent consultant, he joined forces to form Midwest Professionals. His goal with Midwest Professionals is to provide quality service specializing in the tribal auditing. He received his BS from Wake Forest University and his Accounting degree from Central Michigan University.

Evelina Y-Maho

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Evelina Y-Maho is Co-Owner/Founder of YM Solutions, LLC, a native women-own consulting firm. Worked many years in the public health and healthcare arena. Holds a Masters Degree in Administration with an emphasis in Health Sciences and an undergraduate degree in Clinical Dietetics and Chemistry from Northern Arizona University. Early in her career, much of her work focused on Prevention and Management of Chronic Disease among American Indian populations. Experienced and skilled in project design, implementation, evaluation, and fiscal management. Much of her work entails collaborative work with Tribal Health Programs, Hospitals (IHS/638) Facilities and Urban Indian Health Centers. Currently, Evelina works with the National Council of Urban Indian Health and continues to support AI/AN programs. At Falmouth Institute, she serves as an Adjunct Faculty Member.

Stephanie Zehren

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Ms. Zehren graduated from the University of Colorado School of Law after graduating in the top of her class and being admitted to the Order of the Coif for her law school achievements. In 2007, Ms. Zehren joined Daniel W. Hester to form the law firm of Hester & Zehren, which is solely devoted to the practice of Indian law. Ms. Zehren represents Indian tribes and Indian organizations primarily in the areas of protection and enhancement of water rights and tribal natural resources. In addition, she represents clients on a myriad of employment, health, and tribal sovereignty matters, and has been involved in cases involving the Indian Child Welfare Act, tribal economic development, and Native American prisoners’ religious rights. She is admitted to practice law in the State of Colorado and in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

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Our People

Experience, expertise, dedication – meet the Falmouth team working tostrengthen the tribes and tribal organizations of Indian Country.

Adam Bailey

Raymond Bantum

Denise Brinkley

Melanie Burkhart

Karla Bylund

Julia Coates, Ph.D.

Ed Felker

Linée Ferguson

John Friel

Marissa Gehley

Jon Grant

Lisa Harjo

James Harrison

Sam Hill

Joe Hobot

Lisa Jaeger

Kostan Lathouris

Sarah Lawson

Erin Levant

Jeffrey S. Marciano

Brian Mathers

Dawn McKeever

Desiree McPherson

Mekko Miller

Wes Miller

Jennifer Newton

Stephen D. Osborne

Patina Park

Brian Pearson

Terry Rainey

Lisa Riggleman

Harold Rivkin

Eduardo Sanchez

Niki Sandoval

Anita Shah

Kurt Tucker

Evelina Y-Maho

Stephanie Zehren

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Accounting/Office Manager

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Designer/Web Manager

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Director of Financial Services

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Customer Care Representative

Learning and Development Consultant

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Senior Law and Governance Analyst

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Curriculum and Instruction Specialist

President/CEO

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Marketing Manager

Curriculum Development Specialist

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Director of Training Administration

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Director, Learning and Development

Director of Background and Adjudication Services

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Finance

Adjunct Faculty ~ Human Resources

Adjunct Faculty ~ Law & Governance

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