Kennis (Ken) Bellmard

Kennis (Ken) Bellmard, an enrolled member of the Kaw Nation in Oklahoma, is the Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs for Policy and Economic Development.

Mr. Bellmard has been a practitioner of Native America law since 1990, practicing as a tribal attorney representing tribes and tribal entities, as well as helping develop tribal economic ventures. He previously served as the attorney general for the Absentee Shawnee Tribe, as the legal advisor to the Haskell Indian Nations University Board of Regents, as chair of the Indian Law Section of the Oklahoma Bar Association, as an associate supreme court justice for the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma, and has been on the forefront of Indian gaming development and energy development on Indian land.

Bellmard received his associate’s degree from Northern Oklahoma College, a bachelor’s degree in history and education from Oklahoma State University and a juris doctor from the University of Oklahoma College of Law.

Active in Kaw Nation cultural activities, he has been a member of the Kaw Nation’s Cultural Committee and was drumkeeper for the Kaw I-Lon-Shka ceremonial dances.