Trusted expertise for sovereign nations and public institutions

Founder and Principal of Dupris Management Group, LLC, Shawn Johns is Miniconjou Lakota and an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. Mr. Johns has over thirty years of professional experience in tribal enterprises, Indian gaming, tribal government finance, and Silicon Valley technology. As the current Chief Financial Officer for the Pauma Band of Luiseno Indians, Mr. Johns works every day on the Pauma Band Reservation, where he is also an active and engaged participant in the life of the community. If you are going to work for Indian people, it is essential to understand tribal issues from the inside — and Mr. Johns lives that commitment daily.

Mr. Johns has provided Indian gaming business and economic research to the Indian Gaming Association (IGA) since 2001, where he previously served as its Director of Research until 2009. Since leaving IGA, Mr. Johns has continued as a consulting contributor to IGA's Annual Economic Impact of Indian Gaming in the United States. His annual report to IGA was referenced by the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development in a letter to the Secretary of the Treasury, citing the economic impacts of the Indian gaming industry and the importance of allocating COVID-19 response funds to federally recognized tribes.

Mr. Johns has held executive leadership roles across seven tribes managing more than ninety enterprises — including sixteen tribal casinos, thirteen hotels, seventeen convenience stores, timber companies, and government contracting firms — with direct budget oversight exceeding $200 million. His career includes service as CEO of the Colville Tribal Federal Corporation, Director of Finance for the Lummi Indian Business Council, and General Manager of the Elwha River Casino, as well as senior roles at Electronic Arts and JUUL Labs. Mr. Johns holds an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Washington Foster School of Business.

Henry Cagey is an enrolled member of the Lummi Nation and one of the most respected tribal leaders in Indian Country. As Former Chairman of the Lummi Nation and a U.S. Navy Veteran, Mr. Cagey brings thirty-five years of tribal governance experience to his consulting work, with deep expertise spanning treaty tribes, executive order tribes, and the full range of government-to-government rights and federal trust responsibilities. Mr. Cagey lives on the Lummi Reservation, is deeply active in his community, and continues to participate in and advocate for tribal issues that affect his people — because genuine understanding of tribal life comes from living it.

Mr. Cagey has been an active force behind landmark federal legislation affecting Indian Country, including the General Welfare Exclusion Act, the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act, Self-Governance legislation, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, and the Violence Against Women Act as it applies to tribal jurisdictions. He has served on the Tax Committees of both the National Congress of American Indians and the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, and has served as an advisor to the U.S. Treasury Tribal Advisory Committee, reporting directly to the Treasury Secretary. Mr. Cagey is also Vice Commander of American Legion Post 33, and remains active in his community through the Boys & Girls Club, Mother Nation, and Catholic Community Services.

Kevin Grega is a Certified Public Accountant and senior financial reporting professional with thirty-five years of experience in SEC reporting, technical accounting, and equity plan management across a broad range of industries including precious metals, pharmaceuticals, entertainment, healthcare, and hospitality.

Mr. Grega served as Sr. Director of Financial Reporting and Sr. Director of Equity Plans at A-Mark Precious Metals, a publicly traded accelerated filer with $9.3 billion in annual revenues, where he managed all SEC filings including Forms 10-K, 10-Q, S-1, S-3, proxy statements, and Section 16 reports in full compliance with GAAP, SEC regulations, and SOX requirements. He previously served as Director of Financial Reporting at Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, and has held senior financial roles at Rentech, Monsanto/Seminis, Philips/ADAC Labs, and Twentieth Century Fox. Mr. Grega holds a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting from the University of Washington and is a licensed CPA in New York State and a member of the AICPA.

Mary Lee Johns is Miniconjou Lakota and an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, bringing fifty years of experience in program planning, federal grant administration, and legislative policy analysis impacting American Indian tribes. Ms. Johns lives on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in Timberlake, South Dakota, and is an active and vocal participant in her tribal community, regularly engaging on tribal issues and making her voice heard on matters that affect her people. That connection to reservation life gives her a grounded, firsthand perspective that informs every engagement she takes on.

As a Council Tribal Legislative Specialist for the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Council, Ms. Johns conducted research and policy analysis on legislation affecting tribal governments, developed federal consultation procedures, and managed the development of national, regional, and local coalitions in support of tribal interests. She has authored grant applications for federal, state, local government, and private foundation funding, and brings extensive experience in multi-year community strategic planning, social impact assessments, and program budget management. She is a recognized public speaker and trainer on Native American issues at the national, state, and local levels, and has developed cross-cultural diversity curricula and standard operating procedures for organizations working with tribes in culturally sensitive contexts.

Presently, Ms. Johns is actively writing a book on the history and legacy of the Poor Buffalo/Dupris Tiwahe — family, in Lakota — who lived along the Moreau River on the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. The work reflects her deep commitment to preserving the cultural memory and oral traditions of her people for future generations.

Vernon Robertson is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and a business executive with forty years of experience in leadership, finance, and operations across Indian Country. He has worked with several tribal nations across multiple states, with a career that spans some of the largest and most complex tribal gaming operations in the country.

As Senior Vice President of Gaming Operations for the Corporate Commission of the Mille Lacs Band, Mr. Robertson led both Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley through a period of 20% annual revenue growth, oversaw $122 million in combined hotel expansions, and promoted several Mille Lacs Band members into senior casino leadership roles including General Manager. As VP and CFO of Grand Casino Mille Lacs for thirteen years, he drove revenue to the highest levels in the property's history and completed a $42 million expansion. He later served as VP of Finance at Grand Casino Hinckley, leading the finance department through COVID-19 shutdown and a record EBITDA recovery upon reopening.

He holds an MBA, is a graduate of the Executive Development Program at the University of Nevada, Reno, and is a speaker and presenter at IGA and MIGA tradeshows.