Clarence Beckwith Distinguished Alumni Award: John Miller

John Miller is the tribal chairman of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. As the highest elected official of the sovereign nation, he presides over the tribal council,  which is empowered to promote and protect the peace, health, safety, education and general welfare of the Band’s 4,000 members.

As tribal chairman, he has the dual role as CEO of the Pokagon Band Gaming Authority, which oversees the Four Winds Casino Resort in New Buffalo. 

John is also a trustee of the Four Winds Casino Resort business board and serves as chair of the board of The Pokagon Fund, a charitable organization funded by a designated stream of revenues from the Four Winds Casino. The Fund has distributed over $4 million in the past 18 months to communities, groups and organizations in southwest Michigan.

He earned an Associate of Applied Science degree in Hospitality Management from LMC in 1998.

John Miller received the Clarence Beckwith Distinguished Alumni Award in 2009.