TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — Cherokee Nation Language Department Executive Director Howard Paden took an oath of office Thursday after being confirmed by the Council of the Cherokee Nation as the Secretary of Language and Culture during a special committee meeting.
“There are few people as dedicated to the Cherokee language as Howard Paden. He has made an effort to share the Cherokee language his entire career,” said Cherokee Nation Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. “The language department that Paden directs has created 123 high-level second-language speakers, provided essential needs to more than 1,000 first-language fluent speakers, delivered over 200,000 hours of language lessons to citizens near and far, and it is helping build the next generation of first language speakers.”
Chief Hoskin first announced his nomination of Paden as the tribe’s first Secretary of Language and Culture at his final State of the Nation address earlier this month.
Paden, was born in Stilwell, grew up in Vian, and now resides in Tahlequah. He has worked for the Cherokee Nation for almost 24 years in various roles. Paden started his career in 2003 with the Indian Child Welfare Department. He worked every day toward Cherokee family reunification, while helping create language and culture initiatives on the side, such as employee language classes, cultural language packets for foster families, and a Cherokee cultural camp for foster families across the country.
In 2014, Paden was part of the team tasked with developing what became the Cherokee Language Master Apprentice Program. The adult Cherokee language immersion program pairs novice learners with master-level, fluent Cherokee speakers. This learning method was partially inspired by Paden’s experience with a similar Spanish program at the Universidad de Idiomas (University of Languages) in Bolivia.
CLMAP has had 78 graduates since its inception. Many of the graduates have gone on to teach or work at one of the tribe’s immersion schools or in the Language Department.
In 2020, Paden was tasked with spearheading the Cherokee Nation Language Department, which contained several language programs and the Cherokee immersion schools.
“As developer of today’s language department, Howard Paden remains heavily involved with every language program and initiative,” said Deputy Chief Bryan Warner. “Whether it’s going out and doing work on elders’ homes through speaker services, or congregating with language learners and their families, I’ve seen Howard dedicate every day to the Cherokee language.”
Paden’s position as Executive Director came one year after Chief Hoskin and Deputy Chief Warner signed a historic piece of legislation, the Durbin Feeling Language Preservation Act, which sets aside millions to support language efforts. Since 2019, around $182 million has been invested in the tribe’s language efforts.
“It is my goal to make sure the Cherokee language is alive, not just preserved, but alive and breathing, spoken out in the world,” said Paden. “The Cherokee language is alive in the Cherokee Nation, and we wouldn’t have gotten here without the unending support of the Hoskin/Warner administration.”
The act funded the construction of a $20 million Durbin Feeling Language Center in Tahlequah that has been home to the Cherokee Immersion School and language department since 2022. A second language immersion school was also created at the Greasy School campus in Adair County.
Paden led the development of the Speaker Services program that helps the remaining population of first-language speakers improve their quality of life by providing elder speakers with safe and affordable housing. A thousand speakers have been served through this program since its inception in 2022.
In 2025, the CLMAP program was expanded by adding language department satellite offices in Kenwood, where a northern dialect of Cherokee can be learned.
The act also funded an additional $30 million facility that opened in 2026 on the Durbin Feeling Language campus. This building now houses the immersion middle school, ᏧᎾᏕᎶᏆᏍᏗ ᎦᎵᏉᎩ ᏂᏚᏳᎪᏛ (School of the Seven Directions).
Other recent language efforts include major dubbing projects, such as the 2025 Cherokee dub of “How to Train Your Dragon,” made in collaboration with DreamWorks Animation and NBCUniversal, and the 2024 dub of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” made in collaboration with Amazon Studios.
“I’ve known Howard for many years. We met in a Cherokee language class. At one point, we were worried we would see the loss of the Cherokee language in our lifetime. Now we have hopes to hear the language organically, at the playground, on main street,” said District 2 Councilor Candessa Tehee. “I’m here today in a historic moment, and I see a bright future for our language.”
Paden also initiated the creation of the Cherokee Dictionary app in 2025, made in partnership with Kiwa Digital Ltd. His most recent effort is the Cherokee Language Learning Hub, published this year as a website that compiles all written and oral Cherokee language resources, available to the public.
Paden’s new position as Secretary of Language and Culture will allow him to continue to oversee the same programs, while identifying even more language revitalization opportunities locally and the federal level.
“Having this cabinet position centralizes the importance of Cherokee language and culture. As Secretary, I can work with our team to make strategic plans when it comes to traditional foods, land management, and advise the Chief on how culture intersects with everything we do at the Cherokee Nation. This position makes culture something current, living, and interactive,” Paden said.