Venida Chenault

Venida S. Chenault is an American Potawatomi government official and academic administrator who served as president of Haskell Indian Nations University (HINU) from 2014 to 2019. She was previously a professor of social sciences and served as the HINU vice president of academic affairs from 2004 to 2014.

Early life and education Chenault is a member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation. She is from the Lawrence, Kansas metropolitan area. Chenault attended Haskell Indian Nations University (HINU) as a student in the Fall of 1975 and the Spring of 1984. She later attended the University of Kansas where she earned a bachelor's degree in social work in 1986, a master's in social work in 1990, and a Ph.D. in philosophy in 2004. served as interim director of American Indian studies (June 1996 to July 1999); as acting associate dean for the Division of Instruction (December 1997 to June 1998); as acting director of the Institute for Distance Education (April to August 2003); and as co-director of a Ford Foundation grant that Haskell held in conjunction with the University of Kansas, exploring the Native American experience. On January 12, 2014, Chenault was selected by the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) to serve as the Haskell Indian Nations University. In March 2019, Chenault took a program analyst position in the BIE office of research, policy, and post-secondary education.

Personal life Chenault's son, Joshua Arce is an academic administrator who served in various roles at HINU during his mother's tenure including as head of the IT department, acting dean of students, and acting president.

Selected works