President Biden announced the appointment of Navajo Nation First Lady Phefelia Nez to the board of The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. The Kennedy Center boasts a rich schedule of diverse events, hosting more than 2,000 performances each year while being home to the National Symphony Orchestra and the Washington National Opera.
The Kennedy Center is known to most Americans for its nationally televised Kennedy Center Honors, which gives lifetime achievement awards to prominent artists and entertainers. (Recent winners included actor George Clooney, singers Amy Grant and Gladys Knight, composer Tania León and the Irish rockers U2.)
First Lady Nez said: “The arts, education, and museums are essential to the well-being and health of all communities. The arts reflect our livelihoods, creativity, innovation, and self-identity as the First People of this country. It is a critical time in history in which the arts and education are essential to building vibrant and thriving communities. I look forward to uplifting this work at the national level…”
Nez grew up on Hopi Partition Land in Arizona and earned bachelors degrees in Criminal Justice and Political Science at Northern Arizona University, where she also earned a Master of Public Administration degree. Her focus as First Lady, while broad, has been largely on education. Her talents will be welcome as The Kennedy Center strives to live up to the “art for everyone” ideals espoused by its namesake.
The First Lady’s husband, Jonathan Nez, was elected president of the Navajo Nation in 2018, at 43 the youngest person ever to hold the job. (Like the First Lady, he also earned bachelor’s and master’s Degrees from Northern Arizona. )
President Nez spoke about his wife’s appointment in a statement, saying:
“On behalf of the Navajo people, I congratulate my wife, First Lady Nez, on her historic appointment to the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees. We thank the Biden-Harris Administration for recognizing the work of the First Lady and, most importantly, for having a seat at the table for tribal nations in the performing arts. With First Lady’s experience and passion for Navajo arts, education, and language, we are optimistic that she will work with other board members to benefit and highlight our tribal people and communities. Congratulations to her on this milestone achievement,”
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez
