NAFOA is excited to announce the awardees for the Graduate Student Conference Award. This award names four current or recent graduate students as Fall Conference Fellows. The Graduate Student Conference Award covers all hotel and conference fees and provides a stipend for travel to the NAFOA 2022 Fall Finance & Tribal Economies Conference at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut.

NAFOA is pleased to welcome our inaugural Fall Conference Fellows, Alaina Capoeman-Davis (Quinault Indian Nation), Karli Moore (Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina), Gavin Holzworth (Cherokee Nation), and Forrest Cox (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation).

Alaina Capoeman-Davis, Quinault Indian Nation
M.B.A., Gonzaga University

Currently, Alaina is the Program Manager for Native Action Network, a Seattle-based non-profit that focuses on womxn in leadership development and civic engagement. She started an MBA program at Gonzaga University in June 2022. She is part of the 14th cohort for Native American Entrepreneurship. Alaina enjoys reading, hiking, beading, dancing, canoe pulling, and having adventures with her family.

Karli Moore, Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina
Ph.D., Environment and Resources, Stanford University

Karli Moore’s work seeks to advance tribal sovereignty, economic opportunity, and climate change response for Native communities through sustainable agriculture development.  Karli has bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and agricultural business management from NC State University, master’s degrees in agricultural economics (University of Arkansas) and rural development (Ghent University), and a graduate certificate in food policy and sustainability leadership from Arizona State University. She was a biodiversity coordinator at BASF, an economic fellow at the Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative, and director of programs at the Native American Agriculture Fund.

Gavin Holzworth, Cherokee Nation
M.B.A., Oklahoma State University

Gavin Holzworth is a Cherokee citizen originally from Bakersfield, CA. He completed his bachelor’s degree at Oklahoma State University in Electrical Engineering. Currently, Gavin is pursuing an MBA at OSU while working  for a data consultancy as a Business Intelligence Intern.

Forrest Cox, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation
M.B.A., University of Michigan — Stephen M. Ross School of Business

Forrest is a first-year MBA candidate at the University of Michigan – Stephen M. Ross School of Business, with his studies focused on finance and was selected as a Toigo Fellow. Prior to Ross, Forrest supported a nationwide beneficiary program called Lifeline, which provides access to phone and internet services for low-income families and individuals as directed by the Federal Communications Commission. He conducted data analysis for program management and developed the program’s outreach to Native American communities in Indian Country. Prior to Lifeline, Forrest supported the Cherokee Nation’s government relations and economic development efforts.

Thank You to Our Graduate Student Conference Award Donors