Member Webinar: Native American Heritage Month 2023

Andrea Bighead is the project integrator for the System Integration, Test & Evaluation team for the Future Air Dominance Family of Systems program. She is a tribal member of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma.

Andrea supports the Future Air Dominance Family of Systems, System Test, Integration, & Evaluation (SIT&E) team by organizing teamwork loads and working with leadership to ensure the team goals are met. She is the Virtual Native American Caucus (NAC) chair, one of Northrop Grumman’s Employee Resource Groups (ERG).

Andrea started her career at the Northrop Grumman Corporation as an administrative assistant in 2016. She joined the program integration team (PIT) in 2019 and has supported multiple programs. Most recently she supports the Future Air Dominance Family of Systems program where she continues to be a pivotal force with the team integration.

Prairie Bighorn-Blount, an enrolled member of the Fort Peck Sioux Tribe and raised on the Northern Cheyenne reservation in Montana, has forged an impressive path of leadership and community service. Her journey began with a bachelor’s degree in business from Rocky Mountain College, followed by a master’s in business administration from the University of Montana. Post-education, Prairie served at the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, DC. There, she administered contracts for Native American communities across the U.S., securing over $5 million for indigenous economic development and contributing to federal review panels. Returning to her roots, Prairie served as the Comptroller for the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, managing $34 million in federal funding and ensuring timely audits. Recognized for her leadership, Prairie received the 2011 National Center for American Indian Economic Development’s 40 Under 40 Award. She now sits on the board of directors for the Montana Board of Research and Commercialization Technology and contributes as a panelist for MIT Solve’s Indigenous Communities Fellowship program. Currently, Prairie serves as the Executive Director of the American Indigenous Business Leader’s organization, championing the cause of increased American Indian representation in business and entrepreneurship, and continuing her legacy of community development.

Colleen R. Billiot is a citizen of the United Houma Nation and serves as the Public Education Coordinator for the American Indian College Fund. She received a bachelor’s from Tulane University in international relations and master’s in conflict resolution from Georgetown University. Colleen had worked at every level of government before switching to the nonprofit sector and has been in the public relations field for 8 years. She served as the first Communications Specialist for the Administration for Native Americans. Colleen has also provided emergency communications and support during natural disasters and the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in Louisiana and Texas. She leads several cultural preservation and reclamation projects for her people, notably the Houma Language Project and Tasso Time. Colleen occasionally participates in speaking engagements on a range of topics such as Houma history in Louisiana, Indigenous cultural revival, and the need to go beyond land acknowledgements.

Jerrell was born and raised in Minneapolis Minnesota. He is a member of the Leech Lake band of Ojibwe from Leech Lake, MN. Jerrell has worked at Nielsen since 2010 and currently leads a team in the Engineering division there. He is also the co-founder of Native American, Tribal, and Indigenous Voices (NATIV) an Internal business resources group focusing on professional support as well as education and advocacy for indigenous issues.

Megan Pierouchakos is a senior director and membership relationship advisor at Seramount. In her role at Seramount, Megan advises Fortune 100 & 500 companies on their talent and DEI initiatives. Prior to Seramount, Megan spent 15 years in corporate roles as a Talent & DEI practitioner spanning the entire talent lifecycle. Most recently, she was Vice President of Human Resources at the American Bankers Association (ABA) where she set the strategic direction for learning and development, talent management, and succession planning. Prior to that, Megan was the Workforce Diversity Manager in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at Freddie Mac.

She was recently a part-time adjunct faculty member with the Georgetown HRM program, served a two-year term on the Georgetown HRM Advisory Board, and was a strategic plan task force member with the Centre for Global Inclusion. Megan holds a SPHR certification from HRCI and a Prosci ADKAR Change Management Certification.

Megan received her undergraduate degree from Mount Holyoke College with a dual major in International Relations and Spanish and has a graduate degree from Georgetown University in HR Management. She resides in Northern Virginia with her family and actively volunteers with the Girl Scouts of America and other youth organizations her children participate in.

Dr. Amanda R. Tachine is Navajo from Ganado, Arizona. She is Náneesht’ézhí Táchii’nii (Zuni Red Running into Water) born for Tł’ízí łání (Many Goats). She is an Assistant Professor in Educational Leadership & Innovation at Arizona State University. Amanda’s research explores the relationship between systemic and structural histories of settler colonialism and the ongoing erasure of Indigenous presence and belonging in college settings using qualitative Indigenous methodologies. She is the author of Native Presence and Sovereignty in College and co-editor of Weaving an Otherwise: In-relations Methodological Practice. She has published in the Journal of Higher Education, Qualitative Inquiry, International Review of Qualitative Research, International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, and other scholarly outlets. She also has published thought pieces in the Huffington Post, Al Jazeera, The Hill, Teen Vogue, Indian Country Today, Inside Higher Ed, and Navajo Times where she advances ideas regarding discriminatory actions, educational policies, and inspirational movements.

Erick Santero is the Senior Music Content Editor at Gracenote, a Nielsen company where he supports the Latin American and sub-Saharan African markets. Erick is the co-founder of the NATIV (Native American, Tribal & Indigenous Voices) business resource group. Erick is also an Indigenous activist and has been on the front line of Indigenous and Native American movements in the US and Latin America for over 30 years.