Chuck Hoskin Jr. serves as the Cherokee Nation Secretary of State. He was appointed to the cabinet position by Principal Chief Bill John Baker and unanimously confirmed by the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council in 2013 and reconfirmed unanimously in March of 2016.
As Secretary of State, Chuck worked side-by-side with Principal Chief Bill John Baker and Deputy Chief S. Joe Crittenden to secure funding from the federal government to fund a billion joint venture investment in better health care for all Cherokees. He has also served as the Baker administration’s strongest advocate on sovereignty protection, investments in education, increased minimum wage, expanded maternity leave, the creation of family leave for employees who foster Cherokee children, and preservation of Cherokee language and culture.
Chuck is a graduate of Vinita High School and has a Bachelor of Arts and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Oklahoma. He is a member of the Cherokee Nation and Oklahoma Bar Associations.
He formerly served as a member of the Council of the Cherokee Nation, representing District 11 for six years and served his final two years as Deputy Speaker. On the council, he worked with his fellow council members and the Baker Administration to start building homes for Cherokees again, which had not been done in more than a decade, increased education funding and sponsored legislation to expand health care service through casino dollars.
Chuck believes not only in the sacred nature of our water, but that a clean environment is our most valuable economic resource. That preservation of our language, arts and culture are a vital part of what ties us together as a people. That all Cherokees deserve an equal shot at economic opportunity. And that to achieve a brighter future for all Cherokees, we need strong leadership from our Chief their first day on the job.
He has testified at the United Nations on behalf of the Cherokee Nation and serves on multiple boards and commissions including the United States Health and Human Services Secretary’s Tribal Advisory Committee.
Chuck is a graduate of Vinita High School, the University of Oklahoma and the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Chuck resides in his hometown of Vinita, OK, with his wife, January. They have two children, Triston and Jasmine.
Bryan Warner grew up in Sallisaw where he spent much of his childhood on the back side at Blue Ribbon Downs where his family trained racehorses. He is a 1995 graduate of Sallisaw High School. He has a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology and a Master’s in Education. In 2009, Bryan started his journey at Carl Albert State College as a science instructor, teaching chemistry, biology, microbiology, and botany. He loved teaching and was good at it. The students grew very fond of Mr. Warner and made sure his classes filled up very quickly each semester. He has a way of patiently explaining things so his students can understand it. Although reluctant to leave the classroom that he loves so much, Bryan took his current position of Campus Director at the Sallisaw Campus in 2017. Bryan’s previous work experience includes training race horses while in college and a heavy equipment operator and mining supervisor for his family’s rock quarry.
In 2015, Bryan was elected to the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council. He currently represents District 6, which is the eastern half of Sequoyah County. Bryan was honored by the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development in 2016 as one of the 40 under 40. The 40 Under 40 is a prestigious award which recognizes 40 emerging American Indians from across Indian Country who have demonstrated leadership, initiative, and dedication and made significant contributions in business and/or their community. In 2017, Bryan was appointed to the Tribal Advisory Committee for the Center for Disease Control. While on the council, Bryan has been an advocate for the Cherokee Nation Foster Care program and works diligently to bring positive changes to his district.
Bryan has always had a heart for service and is always willing to lend a hand.
His civic and volunteer experience include time served on the Sallisaw City Council, leading local youth in Church, as well as coaching youth league wrestling, football, and baseball for several years. Bryan is immediate past president of the Sallisaw Lions Club. He also serves on the Sallisaw Youth and Recreation Commission and Board of Directors for the Sallisaw Youth League. Bryan just recently vacated his board position on the Sallisaw Chamber of Commerce where he was the chair of the Education Committee. While on the Education Committee, Bryan helped start the financial literacy program in Sallisaw Public Schools. Biztown and JA in a Day are a couple of these programs most may be familiar with. Bryan is always trying to come up with ideas on how to make things better, especially when it comes to his community.
Bryan and his wife Maco make their home in Sallisaw. They have 3 boys; Kaden, Luke, and Clayton. They are active members of the Sallisaw First United Methodist Church.
