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Biography
Dr. R.K. (Joe) Miskokomon |
Richard K. (Joe) Miskokomon is a citizen of Chippewas of the Thames First Nation located in Southwestern Ontario.
Joe was educated at Mount Elgin Indian Day School, completed high school in London, Ontario, and graduated from Althouse College of Education at the University of Western Ontario. He developed curriculum and taught the first accredited Native Studies course in Ontario for the Board of Education of London.
After several years of teaching, Joe joined the federal government with the Department of Indian Affairs. In four years he held the positions of Education Counsellor, Superintendent of Local Government, Regional Coordinator of Employment Programs for the Ontario Region.
He was requested by the First Nation leadership to become the Executive Director of the Chiefs of Ontario. After several years, the Executive Council of the National Indian Brotherhood asked Joe to become the Chief lobbyist in London England during the patriation of the Constitution.
Upon returning to Canada, Joe was elected Grand Council Chief of the Anishinabek Nation, also known as the Union of Ontario Indians. He lead that organization for the four consecutive terms, a total of twelve years until he voluntarily stepped down in order to return to his home community and care for his aging father.
Demonstrating a strong sense of leadership, Joe served 20 years on council and was Chief of Chippewa for six years. He was instrumental in developing one of the first on-reserve mortgage housing programs in Canada, the first child welfare agency for the Southern First Nations Secretariat in Southwestern Ontario, culminating the successful $15 million negotiated settlement of the Clench
Defalcation Land Claim for his community. He continues to sit as a Settlement Agreement Trustee.
Joe has sat and chaired many boards, commissions, and committees over the past 30 plus years. More recently, he co-chaired the Ontario First Nation Limited Partners Negotiating Team Gaming Agreement, and the Assembly of First Nations Renewal Commission.
Stemming back to early childhood Joe continues to operate several businesses, including a commercial bus, a farming operation, and for the past forty-five years commercially bred, raised and races standard bred racehorses throughout Canada, United States and more recently England.
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