Casey Lozar to Deliver Montana Tech Commencement Address

 

Casey Lozar, chair of the Montana Board of Regents, will be Montana Technological University’s commencement speaker at the university’s ceremony on Saturday, May 7, 2022. The university will award 302 degrees and certificates to 284 students.

“Chair Lozar’s experience on the Board of Regents and his roles with the Federal Reserve, the State of Montana, and in education make him an ideal commencement speaker,” noted Montana Tech Chancellor Les Cook. “We are excited to have him join the Oredigger family as we celebrate the accomplishments of our graduates.”

Casey Lozar is the vice president and director of the Center for Indian Country Development for the Federal Reserve based out of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. The Center is a national research and policy institute committed to assisting tribes across the country reach their full economic potential on their own terms. In this role, he brings to life actionable research and policy development to advance economic and community development in Indian Country with a focus on access to affordable capital, tribal public finance, and advancing economic infrastructure. In 2021, he served Indian Country as a detailee at the United States Department of the Treasury, where he was responsible for distributing $20 billion of American Rescue Plan Act funds to tribal governments to help mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Before leading the Center for Indian Country Development, he served as the executive at the Helena Branch of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve.

Prior to joining the Federal Reserve, Lozar served as an administrator and tribal policy advisor for the State of Montana and directed the State Tribal Economic Development Commission. Additionally, he served Indian Country through national Native organizations as vice president of the American Indian College Fund and chief marketing and development officer at the Notah Begay III Foundation. Casey started his professional career as a middle school Social Studies teacher and worked for Salish Kootenai College, helping to lead their math, science, and culture camps for Native youth.

Lozar holds a B.A. in history from Dartmouth College, a M.Ed. from Harvard University, and an MBA from the University of Colorado-Denver. He has completed executive education coursework at MIT, Columbia University, and the University of California-Berkeley. Currently, Lozar serves as the chair of the Montana Board of Regents, the first Native American to serve in this capacity. Past board membership includes: Montana Community Foundation, S&K Technologies, S&K Electronics, and Montana Higher Education Student Assistance Corporation. Born and raised on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana, Lozar is an enrolled member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and a descendent of the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes. Casey lives in Helena with his wife Reagen and their four children: Leighton, Winn, Mary Mac, and Asher.

Montana Tech's 2022 ceremony will be held outside on Bob Green Field in Alumni Coliseum on Saturday, May 7, 2022, beginning at 11:00 am. This will be the university’s first outdoor ceremony since 2012. For more information, please visit www.mtech.edu/enrollment/graduation/commencement.html.