Who We Are

Jessie is an enrolled citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. Since 2015, Jessie has served as General Counsel for the Prairie Island Indian Community. In that role, she oversees legal and government relations matters for the Tribe and its entities. Jessie was a member of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s women’s basketball team, and she was a professional basketball player before she went to law school. The Charlotte Sting drafted Jessie into the WNBA, and she also completed seasons in France and Greece.

Alisse Ali-Joseph (Choctaw) is an Applied Indigenous Studies faculty member at Northern Arizona University and specializes in the importance of sports and physical activity as a vehicle for empowerment, cultural identity, health, and educational attainment for American Indian people. Alisse was appointed by the President of Northern Arizona University as the Faculty Athletics Representative in Fall 2015. Alisse also serves on the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Minority for Opportunity and Interest Committee, where she ensures the importance of minority student-athlete voice, equity, access, and opportunity. Alisse is a former Division I tennis player at UC Davis.

Natalie Welch is an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, originally from the Qualla Boundary in Western North Carolina. Natalie is currently an assistant professor of Sport Management in the School of Business at Linfield University. She is also the coordinator for the Sport Leadership master’s program and the Faculty Athletics Representative. She is an alumnus of the University of Tennessee and the University of Central Florida and has professional experience working with Nike N7 and Wieden+Kennedy. Natalie is passionate about advocating for Indigenous athletes and equity across all of sport.

Brent Cahwee is a member of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma and also of Euchee descent, originally from Sapulpa, Oklahoma, he is now based in Kansas. Brent is the co-founder and editor of NDNSPORTS.COM, which has been the only online sports publication for the past 21 years dedicated to covering the stories and the successes of Native American athletes at the collegiate and professional level. Over the years, he has partnered with many organizations to foster the growth of exposure for prep athletes in Indian Country with events such as the All-Star football game, Native American Top 50 (basketball), Oklahoma Native All-State Games, and the Indigenous Bowl football game. Brent is a graduate of Haskell Indian Nations University and Missouri State University.

Nicole Been is a citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and a member of Thlopthlocco Tribal Town. She is currently the Associate A.D. for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the University of Oklahoma where she oversees all DE&I efforts for both staff and student-athletes. Prior to this position, she was the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Special Projects for Bacone College. She is an alumnus of Oklahoma State University, Baylor University, and Bacone College where she was a women’s basketball student-athlete. Nicole has dedicated much of her professional career to the world of sports and education where she has experience with the Orlando Magic of the NBA, Baylor Lady Bears basketball program, Oklahoma State University Athletics Department, Big 12 Conference women’s basketball tournament championships, and with the Langston University Athletics Department where she also served as an Assistant Professor in Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, Director of Interns, and a member of the University’s Institutional Review Board for Diversity.

Dominic Tiger-Cortes is a citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and a member of Thlopthlocco Tribal Town. He is the founder of Hoop Medicine, an initiative created to promote Native/Indigenous and Inner City Youth through the Arts, Sports, and Culture. Providing Wellness enriched educational services and programs that support our philosophy to Honor Our Only Passion (HOOP) which within creates Medicine. Tiger-Cortes played basketball at Haskell Indian Nations University.