White Earth tribal administrator gets boost from Bush Fellowship

“Every single day we have people that are coming to us with all kinds of jurisdictional questions,” Rogers told Buffalo’s Fire. “There’s big Land Back issues that we’re facing continuously, with attacks on tribal sovereignty. And I just want to lead and make decisions that are best moving forward.”

Rogers works with 1,300 employees at the White Earth Nation in northern Minnesota who collectively serve the tribe’s 17,000 members. On top of a master’s degree in tribal administration and governance from the University of Minnesota-Duluth, he’s aiming to start law school in the fall of 2026.

These prospects got a boost earlier in the year when Rogers was named as one of 29 Bush Fellows. He’s one of five that are Native. The Bush Foundation provides recipients up to $150,000 over two years to work on skills and leadership to best empower themselves and their communities.

“It’ll give me some more direction as far as where I want to go with my leadership and where I want to go with my position as well,” said Rogers, who added he thinks it’ll help with his confidence. “I know we shouldn’t seek external validation, but as Native people, a lot of us have imposter syndrome.”

Ever since he was young, Rogers has had a goal to help his people in any way he can. He grew up in the projects of the White Earth reservation, his family struggling to make ends meet. He said he and a lot of his friends saw substance addiction wreak destruction across his neighborhood.

“Growing up, we didn’t have many people to look up to,” he said. “We kinda learned what not to do, who not to be like.”

One person who sees Rogers as an ideal person to be like is his boss, Laurie York, executive director for the White Earth Nation.

“He’s a good listener, he brings a good balance to see different perspectives,” she said. “And that’s really helpful to me, because I might see something one way, and the insight that he brings broadens that perspective.”

York recalled first seeing Rogers in 2020 when he was working in the public safety department. He struck her as quiet and reserved, so she was surprised — and impressed — when he applied for the deputy director position.

“He had a strong cultural component, and also really talked a lot about the youth and things that he would like to do if he was in that role,” recalled York. Rogers emerged as the top candidate for the position and has served as the tribe’s deputy director for nearly five years now.

In working with a large tribal community, administrators have to respond to multiple challenges, expectations and personalities. York said Rogers navigates this on a regular basis by simply being accessible.

“It’s more so listening to tribal leaders, listening to the program managers and directors and then coming up with how to move forward,” said York. “But also making sure that it’s something that could be sustainable or realistic.”

And the job isn’t without its trials. York recalled a time when they had been responding and addressing various community concerns from early morning into the late evening. The two administrators were exhausted with the high demand, but Rogers still managed to work in a little humor.

“I said, ‘Geez, we need some time to rest here! This is really stressful.’ And his response to me was, ‘I absolutely agree with you, and so does my bald spot.’ It was a good laugh, and good medicine for both of us,” she said.

As for Rogers’s potential with the Bush Fellowship, York said she’s absolutely sure he’ll accomplish his goals due to his dedication to getting things done. She added he’d be in a good position to become a judge one day.

Besides having a strong supporter in the White Earth tribal offices, Rogers also has one at home: Rachel Rogers.

She said she was drawn in by his curiosity, kindness and emotional intelligence.

“He came to our first date with a list of questions just in case the conversation stalled,” she said. “He put a lot of intention and care into it. He just does that to this day. He goes into things with such care and wants to be the best that he can.”

They never resorted to Rogers’s list of questions. “The conversation went well,” she said.

So well that the two eloped in Norway in June 2024 (Rachel is Norwegian) and now raise three children. Rachel also works for the White Earth Tribal government, in its behavioral health department.

She says she’s confident that her husband’s quiet and level-headed leadership will help him achieve what he wants through the Bush Fellowship. And while he’s a focused and determined administrator, she says he has his priorities straight.

“As soon as he walks through the door at home, he’s playful with the kids and helping with everything,” she said. “It’s chaotic but it’s fun, and we’re always trying to make sure that we’re giving our kids lots of attention even when we’re tired and a little burnt out from the day.”

Rogers is prepping for the LSAT and reviewing possible options for law school. Once he accomplishes his degree, he says he’d like to help the White Earth Nation get more of its state forest back.

“Our reservation is checkerboarded,” he explained. “We have to think about the private land owners, the state-owned land and the federal. So we’re really checking our focus on the approach that’s going to allow us to go in phases and get the full state forest back.”

Rogers said he expects lots of resistance from Minnesota counties surrounding the White Earth Reservation, but he’s convinced that with a law degree he can help tribal leaders make informed decisions that’ll eventually help them succeed.

“That analytical way of thinking is really going to benefit us,” he said, “because every day we have people trying to threaten our sovereignty.”