LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Back in the turbulent and creative 1960s, a small group of Native community leaders in California shared a vision of enhancing the quality of life for American Indians by improving their economic conditions.

The National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development, which started back then as a grass roots economic development initiative by seven individuals in Los Angeles, will celebrate its 40th birthday during RES 2009 – the 23rd Annual Reservation Economic Summit & American Indian Business Trade Fair.

NCAIED, which hosts the annual summit, is the oldest and largest nonprofit American Indian economic and business development organization in the country with 11 offices staffed by more than 50 employees who supply management and technical assistance to Indian businesses and tribes nationwide.

RES 2009, a four-day conference and trade show, takes place Monday, March 9 through Thursday, March 12 at the Las Vegas Hilton. The conference is sponsored by the Seminole Tribe of Florida and Raytheon.

“We are having our 40th annual anniversary and it will be almost like a birthday bash at RES. We’re having Native Music Rocks, a group production by the Seminole Tribe of Florida. It’s going to be huge. It will take place Monday night directly following the welcome reception,” said Maria Dadgar, NCAIED’s director of development.

Around 2, 500 people are expected to attend RES 2009.

“Registrations are up, sponsorship is up, and even with the economic downturn people still see the value in this organization. We’re very pleased and it was a surprise to us all because we didn’t know what to expect, but it’s been phenomenal,” she said.

Dadgar, an enrolled member of the Piscataway Indian Nation of Maryland, has worked for NCAIED on and off for around 10 years.

“It’s the kind of place you can come and learn so many things and you can spin off, but for many reasons many of us end up wanting to come back and finding our way back here. I’m not the only person that’s recycled,” she said.

Over the past four decades, the center has worked with approximately 80 percent of the 550-plus federally acknowledged American Indian tribes and assisted over 25,000 Indian enterprises while training more than 10,000 tribal members in various aspects of business development.

NCAIED has helped its clients secure more than $4.5 billion in contracts and financing over the years.

The center, which is headquartered in Mesa, Ariz., provides services and training for tribal governments, Indian-owned business and aspiring business owners.

“A thumbnail sketch is, basically, we’re a 501c(3). We operate federal cooperative agreements and those agreements are funded through the Defense Logistics Agency. If you have a business and you need to get a contract that’s where you go. So we show you how to get contracts; we do basic procurement training and since we’re funded through the Defense Department, the contracts are with Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and corporations like that,” Dadgar said.

Another area is providing funding through the Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency to help American Indians plan and start businesses. The center’s services are funded by the federal government and provided free to its tribal clients, Dadgar said.

In addition to its training programs, NCAIED has what is believed to be the oldest college scholarship program of Native students in the country, awarding around five scholarships of $3,000 each year to Native students. Since federal funding is restricted to the purposes for which it is granted, the center holds a number of events to raise scholarship funds.

In addition to RES, the biggest annual function, the center hosts a golf tournament and several awards events.

The 21st Annual National Center Golf Classic was held in conjunction with RES 2009 in Las Vegas March 9. Participants enjoyed a round of golf at the Arroyo Golf Club at Red Rock, meals and refreshments throughout the day, a golf shirt, goodie bags filled with giveaways and business networking opportunities.

NCAIED also hosts a number of awards ceremonies, including the annual Indian Progress in Business event, a multi-faceted event of networking, Indian art and an awards banquet; and the First American Leadership Awards, an annual fundraising event that pays tribute to American Indian economic success and achievements, sponsored by Raytheon.

The awards ceremonies are important beyond the money raised for scholarships,

Dadgar said.

“One of the things that’s always a common thread with our awardees is the fact that they always give back to their communities so we recognize them not only for being successful financially – they’ve broken barriers that way – but they’ve found a way to give back so their recognition is an encouragement for them to keep going.”

Dadgar said the center plans to continue doing what it does best and plans on broadening and diversifying its services into contracts with federal agencies dealing with the environment, labor and energy.

“The National Center has been able to leverage its relationship with the federal government, local public agencies, Fortune 500 corporations and tribal nations for the benefit of Native American firms. And that, to me, is the most important statement about NCAIED. We’re a place where you can come and find a bridge to opportunity and we’ve been doing that since 1969.”