Traci L. Morris, PhD
Since 2014, Dr. Morris has been the executive director of the American Indian Policy (AIPI) Institute at Arizona State University. She is a member of the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma. Under her leadership, the AIPI has grown and diversified its service to Indian Country providing policy analysis, tribally driven research, and capacity building working with such Indian Country partners as the National Congress of American Indians, the Native American Finance Officers Association, and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society. A national expert in tribal broadband and access, she has testified at the Federal Communications Commission and on Capitol Hill. Additionally, she is an expert in Tribal digital equity, broadband policies, and digital sovereignty.
In her work at ASU and prior, Morris has worked with Native American nations, Tribal businesses, and Native American non-profits. Morris’s research and publications are focused on Internet use, digital inclusion, network neutrality, digital equity, and the development of broadband networks in Indian Country. Morris spearheaded and co-authored the groundbreaking Tribal Technology Assessment: The State of Internet Service on Tribal Lands in 2019. Her book, Native American Voices: A Reader, continues to be a primary teaching tool in colleges throughout the country.
Dr. Morris is Affiliated Faculty at ASU's School for the Future of Innovation in Society and ASU’s Center on Technology, Data, and Society, and serves as a Sustainability Scholar in the ASU School of Sustainability. Morris’ community service includes being a former member of the Board and former President of the Phoenix Indian Center, a former member of the AISES Board of Directors, and currently serves on the Advisory Council of the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries, and Museums. Morris is currently a member of the National Tribal Library Broadband Council. Formerly, Morris served a two-year appointment (2014-2016 and 2010-2012) to the Federal Communications Commission's Consumer Advisory Committee and was a member of the Advisory Board for the Department of Labor's Native American Employment and Training Council.
As an entrepreneur before her ASU appointment, Morris founded Homahota Consulting LLC, a national Native American woman-owned professional services firm working in policy analysis, telecommunications, education, and research, assisting tribes in their nation-building efforts and working with Native Nations, tribal businesses, and those businesses working with tribes. Morris has an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Arizona’s American Indian Studies and a B.A. in Liberal Arts from Colorado State University. Morris can be reached at t[dot]morris[at]asu[dot]edu