ADA, Okla. – Chickasaw Nation Governor Bill Anoatubby will deliver the inaugural lecture for the Congressman Lyle H. Boren Lectureship in Public Engagement and Public Service at East Central University Tuesday, March 25 at 12 p.m. in the ECU Foundation Hall, located inside the Chickasaw Business & Conference Center.
This event is free and open to the public. RSVP is requested by March 18 at tinyurl.com/yzm8kw5f or by contacting the ECU Foundation office at 405-850-1784 or via email at foundation@ecok.edu.
Speakers for the event include former Congressman and current Secretary of the Department of Commerce for the Chickasaw Nation, Dan Boren, with Anoatubby delivering the keynote address.
Congressman Lyle H. Boren was born near Waxahachie, Texas, May 11, 1909. He completed high school in Choctaw Okla. in 1927 before continuing his education at East Central State College, now ECU, and Oklahoma A&M College, now Oklahoma State University.
Boren was elected on the Democratic ticket to the 75th Congress in 1936 after running on a platform to support farmers, stay out of war, improve education, conserve soil and to provide pensions for senior citizens. In Washington, Boren produced a bill that established the National Cancer Institute and created the Civil Aviation Authority, later known as the Civil Aeronautics Board. He served in this role until 1946.
Boren went on to become one of Oklahoma’s largest ranchers and founded the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association in 1950. In 1957, he returned to Washington as a lobbyist for the Association of Western Railroads. After retiring, he served as an assistant Oklahoma insurance commissioner. Boren passed away in 1992, leaving behind a resolute legacy that his family continues today.
For more information on Boren, visit okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=BO019.
For more information on the event, contact the ECU Foundation.