Lisa Johnson Billy (born February 21, 1967) is a Chickasaw-American politician who represented

Oklahoma House of Representatives The Oklahoma House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Its members introduce and vote on bills and resolutions, provide legislative oversight for state agencies, and help to craft the state's b ...

District 42, which includes

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Garvin Garvin is both a surname and a given name of Irish origin. Notable people with the name include: Surname: * Alexander Garvin, noted American urban planner, educator, and author *Anita Garvin (1906–1994), American actress * Clifton C. Garvin (19 ...

, Grady and McClain Counties, from 2004 to 2016. She served as

deputy whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology o ...

and vice chair of the Republican Caucus. Billy was ineligible to run for reelection due to term limits in 2016.

Early life

Billy was born on February 21, 1967, in

Purcell, Oklahoma Purcell is a city in and the county seat of McClain County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 6,651. Founded in 1887, Purcell was a railroad town named after Edward B. Purcell, who was an official with th ...

. She is the daughter of Frank and the late Beverly Jones Johnson. She has one brother, Frank Jr. Before beginning a career in the

, she served two terms on the

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Their traditional territory was in the Southeastern United States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee as well in southwestern Kentucky. Their language is classified as ...

Tribal Legislature from 1996 to 2001. Billy served on the National Board for

Girl Scouts of the USA Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA), commonly referred to as simply Girl Scouts, is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. Founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912, it was organized a ...

, as well as on the Sooner Council Girl Scouts Board. Billy is married to Phillip Billy, they have three children.

Education

Billy earned a Bachelor of Arts and Business degree from

Northeastern State University Northeastern State University (NSU) is a public university with its main campus in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The university also has two other campuses in Muskogee and Broken Arrow as well as online. Northeastern is the oldest institution of high ...

and a Master of Education degree from the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

. While a student at NSU, she was inducted into the NSU Hall of Fame, served on the student senate, and served as the president of the Native American Student Association. She also founded Peacemakers Inc., a small business designed to bring out leadership skills in youth.

Career

Prior to her election to the

, Billy served six years as a legislator for the Chickasaw Nation. She is also a former educator in the Department of Continuing Education at the

. She was the first Native American, the first woman, and the first Republican to represent her district.

Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation

On November 21, 2017, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

nominated Billy to be a member of the board of trustees of the

Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation The Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation is an Executive Branch office of the United States Government. The Foundation was established by the Congress in 1992 to honor Morris Udall's thirty years of service in the House of Representati ...

for a term expiring August 25, 2024. On December 21, 2017, the United States Senate confirmed her nomination by voice vote. She officially took office on December 27, 2017.

References

External links

Lisa Billy Profile and Videos
– Chickasaw.TV
2005-2006 Oklahoma Almanac Online--Oklahoma History

Women of the Oklahoma Legislature Oral History Project--OSU Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Billy, Lisa Johnson 1967 births Living people 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native American politicians American people of Choctaw descent Republican Party members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives Chickasaw Nation state legislators in Oklahoma Native American women in politics Northeastern State University alumni People from Purcell, Oklahoma University of Oklahoma alumni Women state legislators in Oklahoma 20th-century Native American women 21st-century Native American women