Janie Simms Hipp

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Janie Simms Hipp
A woman with grey hair, tortoise shell colored glasses, and a black sweater sits behind a microphone and a name tag that reads "Ms. Janie Simms Hipp".
Janie Simms Hipp testifies before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, 2018.
General Counsel of the United States Department of Agriculture
In office
August 1, 2021 – August 2023
PresidentJoe Biden
SecretaryTom Vilsack
Preceded byStephen Vaden
Personal details
BornIdabel, Oklahoma, U.S.
CitizenshipUnited States
NationalityChickasaw
EducationOklahoma City University School of Law, University of Arkansas
OccupationLawyer, Policy Expert & General Counsel for USDA
Known forFounder of USDA's Office of Tribal Relations
Awards2016 President's Volunteer Service Award for lifetime Achievement

Janie Simms Hipp is an agriculture and food lawyer, policy expert, and the founder of the Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative at the University of Arkansas, founder of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Office of Tribal Relations in the Office of the Secretary, founding Executive Director of the Native American Agriculture Fund, . Hipp's work focuses on the intersection of Indian law and agriculture and food law.[1] She is currently the CEO/President of Native Agriculture Financial Services since August 2023.

Early life and education[edit]

Hipp was born in the Choctaw areas of Oklahoma, grew up in Idabel, and is a member of the Chickasaw Nation.[2][3] She graduated from University of Oklahoma in 1978, and earned her Juris Doctor from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 1984. From there, Hipp spent eight years working in food and agricultural law as a commercial litigator, and four years in the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office as the agricultural and rural legal affairs advisor.[4] Working during the 1980s farm crisis, she worked to launch state-level initiatives, and provide assistance to Oklahoma and the national agriculture sector to help curb the farm foreclosures of the time.[4] Hipp went on to attend the University of Arkansas School of Law to earn a Master of Law in Agricultural Law in 1996.[2]

Career[edit]

Hipp has served in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) as National Program Leader for Farm Financial Management, Trade Adjustment Assistance, Risk Management Education, and the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program.[5][6] She also served as Risk Management Education Director in USDA Risk Management Agency. Under Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack (during the Obama Administration), Hipp served as a senior adviser for tribal relations.[5] During this time, Hipp also founded the USDA's Office of Tribal Relations in the Office of the Secretary and served two terms on the Secretary's advisory Committee for Beginning Farmers and Ranchers.[7] Janie Simms Hipp has also served on two delegations to the United Nations regarding women's and Indigenous issues.[6]

In 2014, Hipp returned to the University of Arkansas as the founding director of the Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative and a visiting law professor.[4][8] In 2018, Hipp was named the founding Executive Director of the Native American Agriculture Fund (NAAF), a private charity established with leftover funds (cy pres fund) from the Native American Farmer and Rancher Class Action Settlement, Keepseagle v. Vilsack.[9] The Keepseagle case was filed in 1999 and spent 18 years in federal litigation.[10] The case concerned discrimination against Native American farmers and ranchers in the USDA farm and ranch loan program and the servicing of loans once received.[11] The District of Columbia's U.S. District Court approved a $760 million settlement in April 2011. After two rounds of paid claims, $380 million of the settlement remained undisbursed.[12][13] NAAF was created for the unclaimed amounts, which will be distributed over a twenty year period.[14] Their mission is "to fund the provision of business assistance, agricultural education, technical support, and advocacy services to Native American farmers and ranchers to support and promote their continued engagement in agriculture."[11]

Janie Simms Hipp was nominated as General Counsel for the USDA on March 15. 2021 by President Joe Biden.[15] She was approved by the U.S. Senate on August 1. In this position, Hipp served as USDA's chief legal officer and oversaw over 200 staff attorneys throughout the United States and in Washington, D.C.[5] She resigned in August 2023 to become the CEO/President of Native Agriculture Financial Services.[16]

Awards[edit]

  • 2014 Distinguished Alumni, University of Arkansas Alumni Association[17]
  • 2014 and 2019 Excellence in Agricultural Law Award, American Agricultural Law Association[18]
  • 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award, Oklahoma City University School of Law[6]
  • 2016 President's Volunteer Service Award for lifetime Achievement, awarded by President Barack Obama, presented by the Corporation for National and Community Service[6]
  • 2017 Tim Wapato Public Advocate of the Year, National Center For American Indian Economic Development[19]
  • 2018 Recognition of Leadership, Intertribal Agriculture Council[20]
  • 2021 Trailblazer Hunger Leadership Award, Congressional Hunger Center[20]

Publications[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Janie Simms Hipp – Native American Agriculture Fund". Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  2. ^ a b "Fayetteville attorney named new chief lawyer for USDA". Arkansas Online. 2021-08-01. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  3. ^ Jones-Casey, Kelsey (2013-08-03). "Food Hero: Janie Simms Hipp, Founder of the Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative". Food Tank. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  4. ^ a b c "Alumni Spotlight | Janie Simms Hipp (LL.M. '96) | School of Law | University of Arkansas". law.uark.edu. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  5. ^ a b c "School of Law Alumna Janie Simms Hipp Named USDA General Counsel". University of Arkansas News. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  6. ^ a b c d "AALA Member in the News: Janie Simms Hipp – AALA". Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  7. ^ "Arkansas: Winter 2014". Issuu. 2 November 2017. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  8. ^ "Arkansan's USDA nomination heads to full Senate". Arkansas Online. 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  9. ^ "Senate Ag warms to Hipp, but no vote until after recess". www.thefencepost.com. 27 May 2021. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  10. ^ "Keepseagle | Cohen Milstein". www.cohenmilstein.com. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  11. ^ a b "Native American Agriculture Fund launched – Native American Agriculture Fund". 5 December 2018. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  12. ^ "Keepseagle Settlement Makes Final Payments, Closing Out Landmark Racial Discrimination Case Against Federal Government | Cohen Milstein". www.cohenmilstein.com. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  13. ^ "Keepseagle v. Perdue;Indian Law Bulletins,National Indian Law Library (NILL)". narf.org. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  14. ^ "Council for Native American Farming and Ranching schedules June 20 meeting". Indianz. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  15. ^ "President Biden Announces his Intent to Nominate Key Members of his Administration". The White House. 2021-03-15. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  16. ^ "Janie Hipp". LinkedIn. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
  17. ^ "Speaker details". na.eventscloud.com. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  18. ^ "AALA Awards Janie Hipp for Excellence in Agricultural Law". Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  19. ^ "Janie Simms Hipp Named 2017 Tim Wapato Public Advocate of the Year". ncaied. 2018-08-07. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  20. ^ a b Bly, Zack (2021-06-17). "Announcing our 2021 Trailblazer Hunger Leadership Award Recipient". Congressional Hunger Center. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  21. ^ "Echo Hawk Consulting releases "Feeding Ourselves: Food Access, Health Disparities, and the Pathways to Healthy Native American Communities"". Seeds of Native Health. 2015-07-09. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  22. ^ "Regaining Our Future report". Seeds of Native Health. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  23. ^ "ATTRA | Sustainable Agriculture Program | Vision for Reimagining Native Food Economies Presented in New Publication". Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  24. ^ a b "Farm Bill 2018 Symposium". Farmers, Fairness & the Farm Bill. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
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