WASHINGTON – Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Jerold L. “Jerry” Gidner today announced that he has named Dale Morris as Regional Director of the BIA’s Pacific Regional Office in Sacramento, Calif. Morris, an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, had been serving as chief of the regional office’s natural resources division since 2004. His new appointment became effective on April 27, 2008. The Pacific Regional Office oversees four agencies serving the 102 federally recognized tribes located within the State of California.
“Dale Morris is an experienced Federal manager who brings tremendous leadership qualities to the Pacific Region,” Gidner said. “He is a welcome addition to my regional management team.”
Morris began his career with the BIA as a forester at the Bureau’s Central California Agency in Sacramento in February 1993. He has held several positions within the Pacific Region since then, including serving as Regional Fire Management Officer from 1993 to 1998 and Regional Natural Resources Officer from 1998 to 2004. He also served as acting superintendent of the Palm Springs Agency in 2002 and Central California Agency in 2005.
In 2007, he was selected to participate in the Interior Department’s Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program. Under the program, he served 60-day details as a special assistant to the BIA Director at the Bureau’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., and as a special assistant to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service Regional Director for the California and Nevada Region, respectively.
Morris began his Federal career in 1980 with the United States Forest Service as a Forester with the Targhee National Forest in Idaho. He also worked as a forester with the Lassen National Forest in California from 1984 to 1986.
Morris was raised in Woodland, Calif. He attended the University of California-Davis and the University of California-Berkeley where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry in 1981. He also received a Single Subject Teaching Credential from California State University-Chico in 1990. After receiving his Teaching Credential, Morris worked as a science and math teacher in northern California from 1990 to 1992.
Note to Editors: A photo of Dale Morris may be viewed via the Interior Department’s website at www.doi.gov.
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