Bill Anoatubby

Governor Bill Anoatubby’s childhood was spent in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, where he graduated from Tishomingo High School in 1964. He attended Murray State College and graduated from East Central State College before serving in the Oklahoma National Guard. He began working for the Chickasaw Nation as director of tribal health services becoming lieutenant governor in 1979 and governor in 1987.

Governor Anoatubby has been instrumental in the development of numerous businesses owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation. Under his leadership, the tribe was the first to compact successfully for its own health system. Anoatubby has been a member leader of the inter-tribal council of the Five Civilized Tribes since 1978, remaining active in a wide range of organizations, including the Oklahoma Indian Affairs Commission and the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail Advisory Committee within the U.S. Department of the Interior. He is also the longtime chairman of the Native American Cultural and Educational Authority