photo by: Dmitry Martirosov/Journal-World

Alex Red Corn takes his oath as the 10th president of Haskell Indian Nations University inside the school's auditorium on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026.

“My name is Alex Red Corn … and apparently I’m your new president.”

So began the remarks by Haskell Indian Nations University’s 10th president, Alex Red Corn, who was inaugurated Tuesday night before a cheering crowd inside Haskell’s auditorium.

Hundreds were in attendance, as Red Corn, sporting a pair of bright blue moccasins, sat patiently on stage as Bureau of Indian Education officials praised his ability to lead the nation’s oldest continually-running university serving American Indian students.

When his turn came, Red Corn didn’t hold back, delivering a message of hope with a hint of what lies ahead.

“Our future and our destiny of where we move forward is really only limited by the creative minds and the skills of the people in this institution,” Red Corn said. “I take that seriously,” he added, “but it’s also apparent when people talk about it with a sense of duty and obligation, a commitment.”

photo by: Dmitry Martirosov/Journal-World

Alex Red Corn delivers his presidential address inside Haskell’s auditorium on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026.

The message aligns with what is slowly becoming one of Red Corn’s core principles: Control what you can control, a philosophy he reiterated again on Tuesday.

A citizen of Osage Nation, Red Corn is taking charge of Haskell at a time when many institutions of higher education are facing numerous challenges. U.S. birth rates are declining and directly impact student enrollments; confidence in the value of a college degree is falling; research funding is in question; and disruptions from artificial intelligence are incessant and becoming harder to manage.

As a federally controlled university, Haskell is having to deal with even more pressures — something that Tony Dearman, director of the Bureau of Indian Education, acknowledged on Tuesday.

photo by: Dmitry Martirosov/Journal-World

Tony Dearman, director of the Bureau of Indian Education, speaks during Alex Red Corn’s presidential inauguration ceremony inside Haskell’s auditorium on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026.

“Dr. Red Corn has a tough job,” Dearman said, “because he has to make sure that he continues moving the university forward at a time where we all know, with all the obstacles, with everything that is going on, creating jobs that we don’t even know are needed.”

But if there was one thing everyone agreed on Tuesday, it was that Red Corn is the right man for the job.

Stephanie Conduff, the bureau’s associate deputy director of post-secondary education, said that prior to Red Corn’s appointment, she spent a lot of time asking students and staff about their opinions of Red Corn. Several surveys later, everyone was supportive, including faculty and staff, Haskell’s Board of Regents and other leaders at both the Bureau of Indian Education and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

photo by: Dmitry Martirosov/Journal-World

Alex Red Corn’s blue moccasins are pictured on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026.

“We took so many of your perspectives and viewpoints in mind, and we did not stop until we found the person that you support to be on this stage, that you want to lead,” Conduff said.

Dearman praised Red Corn’s ability to focus on solutions.

“We will discuss issues and problems that we’re seeing throughout the organization, and he sits there and he is trying to create solutions to solve the problems,” Dearman said. “And he does it with humor.”

Red Corn was appointed Haskell’s permanent president in September after serving as interim president since January. He brings significant experience to the job, having previously held a dual role at the University of Kansas as its director and associate professor of indigenous studies and as associate vice chancellor for the Office of Sovereign Partnerships and Indigenous Initiatives.

His appointment comes as students and faculty are hoping for stability in one of just two post-secondary institutions that are directly operated by the federal government.

“Haskell has generations of external factors trying to influence what happens here,” Red Corn said. “So we have the opportunity to just focus on controlling what we can control, and see if we can move forward in a good way.”

“Spread that love out,” he added. “Because when we do that and we build that culture, we are way more powerful.”

photo by: Dmitry Martirosov/Journal-World

Alex Red Corn during the presentation of colors at his presidential inauguration at the Haskell auditorium on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026.