FDIC-Insured - Backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. GovernmentRodney A. Butler, Chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, was recently elected to Chelsea Groton Bank’s Board of Trustees. He became a Corporator of the Bank in April 2022.
“We are pleased to welcome Rodney Butler to our Board of Trustees,” said Anthony Joyce, President and CEO of Chelsea Groton Bank. “He is a well-respected tribal and community leader, in part for how he balances business decisions with a community focus. I look forward to working more closely with Rodney in the years to come, and for our Board and the Bank to benefit from his unique perspective and experience.”
Butler’s service on Tribal Council began in 2004. In 2005, he was appointed Tribal Council Treasurer, a position that included chairing the Tribe’s Finance, Housing and Judicial Committees, the MPTN Utility Authority, and serving as an Interim CEO for Foxwoods Resort Casino. As Chairman, a role he has held since 2010, Butler’s primary focus is to ensure long-term stability for the Tribe’s citizens, government, and business enterprises, and to protect and advance tribal sovereignty.
Prior to Tribal Council, Butler worked in the finance department at Foxwoods Resort Casino. He later became Chairman of the Tribal Business Advisory Board, an executive body responsible for overseeing the Tribe’s non-gaming businesses and commercial properties. Butler was actively involved in multiple resort expansions at Foxwoods as well as community development initiatives on the Reservation, the establishment of the Mashantucket (Western) Pequot Tribe Endowment Trust, the legalization of Sports Betting and iGaming in the state of Connecticut, and Connecticut legislation mandating statewide Native American curriculum and elimination of Native Mascots. He was also a participant in Harvard Business School’s program “Leading People and Investing to Build Sustainable Communities” and is a regular speaker on national panels related to Native American and sovereignty issues. Chairman Butler has also had the privilege of serving as an at-large delegate for the past three Democratic National Conventions.
Butler serves on the boards of Foxwoods El San Juan Casino and Wondr Nation online gaming company, as well as the boards of United South and Eastern Tribes, Indian Gaming Association, Roger Williams University, and Mystic Aquarium. He is an Alternate Vice President for the National Congress of American Indians. Butler was recently appointed to the prestigious Treasury Tribal Advisory Committee that advises the Secretary of the Treasury on matters essential to the economic development of Indian lands for the public good of Tribal citizens.
In 2017, Butler was appointed “Tribal Leader of the Year” by the Native American Finance Officers Association for his efforts to advance tribal economies. He was the 2019 recipient of the prestigious Indian Gaming Association’s John Kieffer Sovereignty Award and was named Citizen of the Year by the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut.
