11th Annual Native Alumni Dinner Scheduled for April 14
The dinner, hosted by Tiospaye Student Council and Native Student Services, is celebrated as part of the 49th annual Wacipi weekend and is free and open to the public. This year’s theme is “Federal Indian Law Through the Years,” and the event will feature a keynote by Dani McQuillen, an enrolled member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin and a 2003 graduate of the Knudson School of Law.
“We’re excited to welcome Dani, as well as our other honorees and their families back to campus,” said John Little, Ph.D., director of Native Recruitment and Alumni Engagement. “This dinner is a great way to honor Native USD alumni and recognize the profound impacts they've had on Indian law."
After the keynote speaker, Native law graduates from each decade will be honored, starting with Franklin Ducheneaux, the first Native American graduate of USD law in 1965.
Read more about the honorees.
Franklin D. Ducheneaux Jr. – Class of 1965
Ducheneaux, an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, graduated from USD with a B.S. in business administration in 1963 and a law degree in 1965. He worked for the Office of Economic Opportunity before serving as director of the Congressional Relations Office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. From 1973-1990, he served as the counsel on Indian Affairs to the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, playing a major role in every piece of Indian legislation. After retiring in 2003, he continues to do part-time freelance work and consulting. Ducheneaux is married to Ernestine Elise Roullier and currently resides in Ronan, Montana.
Rt. Rev. Creighton Leland Robertson – Class of 1976 (posthumous)
Robertson (Mato Ohitika) was a member of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and graduated in 1976 with his J.D. from the USD School of Law. Following graduation, Robertson moved to Webster, South Dakota, where he entered private practice. In addition to his private practice, Robertson served as the attorney for the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and as a tribal judge, becoming the first law-trained magistrate in tribal courts. Starting in 1980, Robertson served as an administrative law judge for the South Dakota Department of Labor and was appointed a member of the South Dakota Human Rights commission in 1985. He then felt a call to ministry and entered the priesthood in 1990. He served in the Santee Mission until 1994, when he was elected the ninth Diocesan Bishop of South Dakota, marking the first time in history that the Diocese of South Dakota was served by a Native American. Robertson was married to Ann Stanage for 47 years before he passed in 2009. He has six children.
Chief Judge Sherman J. Marshall – Class of 1984
Marshall, born and raised on the Rosebud Reservation, received his J.D. from the USD School of Law in 1984. He has served as a tribal judge for 36 years and as chief judge for the Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council, Crow Creek Sioux Tribal Court and Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe. Marshall also served as associate justice for the Supreme Court of the Oglala Lakota Nation; an appellate justice for the Lower Sioux Indian Community; and a special judge for the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Sisseton Wahpeton Sioux Tribe. Marshall is married to Marilyn Marshall, née Bearshield, and they make their home in Gregory, South Dakota. They have two sons, Bill and Jim.
Jennifer Fyten – Class of 1993 (posthumous)
Fyten (Duta Winyan) graduated with her B.A. in criminal justice from USD in 1989 and in the top 10 in her class with a J.D. from the USD School of Law in 1993. During her time at the law school, she interned as a law clerk with the Native American Rights Fund. Fyten had a deep passion for working in Indian Country and advocating for tribal rights and issues. She was well-known for her writing skills and was most proud of the work she did rewriting and developing new tribal codes, including the Flandreau Santee Sioux Child Welfare Code, criminal and civil code and the Three Affiliated Tribes Traffic Code. Fyten passed away on Dec. 25, 2013.
Dani McQuillen – Class of 2003
McQuillen, an enrolled member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin and eligible for enrollment in the Oglala Sioux Tribe, grew up on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. After working at several institutions – including Oglala Lakota College, Red Cloud Indian School and Lakota Funds – McQuillen graduated from law school at USD, where she was president of the Native American Law Students Association and editor-in-chief of the South Dakota Law Review. She earned a Federal District Court clerkship and later worked as an associate attorney for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. She now works for the Bureau of Trust Fund Administration and received the Distinguished Service Award for her work on the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative.
Janet Routzen – Class of 2006
Routzen, a member of the Sicangu Oyate (Rosebud Sioux Tribe), graduated from the USD School of Law in 2006. She is a licensed attorney and was appointed three years ago as the Rosebud Sioux Tribe children's court judge. Previously, she worked as the legal analyst/coordinator for the tribe, where she assisted in the creation and implementation of a new domestic violence, dating violence and truancy code. Routzen also served as the executive director of White Buffalo Calf Women's Society for six years, providing victim services to those on the Rosebud Reservation, and taught business and criminal law at Sinte Gleska University for almost 10 years. She is proud of her three children and seven grandchildren.
Magistrate Judge Andrew Robertson – Class of 2012
Robertson, an enrolled member of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and son of Creighton Robertson, graduated with his J.D. from the USD School of Law in 2012 and began his career as an administrative law judge with the South Dakota Department of Labor and regulation. He later worked as a senior deputy public defender at the Minnehaha County Public Defender’s office, where he focused on representing juveniles and policy-making efforts related to juveniles and the criminal justice system. He was appointed Second Circuit magistrate judge in 2019 and continues to work with the Second Circuit DUI Court. Robertson and his wife Jamie have two children.
Lacy Neuenfeldt – Class of 2013
Neuenfeldt, an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, graduated from the USD School of Law in 2013. She worked for the Florida Bar before returning to her hometown of Flandreau, South Dakota, where she joined the South Dakota Bar as an assistant attorney for the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe. Now, she serves as a compliance director for the tribe’s grant programs and is on the board of directors for the Wholeness Shelter and Helping Kids First. Last March, Neuenfeldt opened her own law firm, Neuenfeldt Law. She also obtained her real estate’s broker license and serves clients on a part-time basis. Most recently, the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe retained Neuenfeldt Law to provide judicial services, and last month, Neuenfeldt was sworn in as the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe’s chief judge.
This event is sponsored in part by First Bank & Trust.
