Elder in Residence

Every spring, the American Indian Center brings to campus a well-respected nationally prominent American Indian elder to foster cultural, academic, social, and spiritual support for Carolina students as well as to enrich the campus community.  Selected elders have come from all parts of the country and are chosen for their deep cultural knowledge and their leadership in Native causes.

During their time on campus, the Elder In Residence (EIR) will spend much of his/her time meeting with students, speaking in classrooms, and meeting with other campus faculty and staff.

The EIR Program is designed to:

• Celebrate Indigenous knowledge,
• Validate Indigenous practices and ways of knowing,
• Reinforce American Indian identity and affirm American Indian students,
• Raise the awareness of Native culture with University staff and faculty, and
• Foster relationships between American Indian communities and the University.

2025 Elder in Residence, Joseph Bell MD

Joseph Bell MD (Lumbee) is from Pembroke NC. He is a 1982 graduate of the UNC School of Pharmacy and a 1986 graduate of the UNC School of Medicine. He is the first Lumbee Pediatrician and the first Native American Pediatrician in North Carolina. Dr Bell is a past president of the Association of American Indian Physicians, a member of the North Carolina American Indian Health Board and the Committee on Native American Child Health. He worked four years in tribal health and Indian Heath Service in Oklahoma and 24 years on the Catawba reservation in Rock Hill, South Carolina. He is currently the senior Pediatrician and managing partner for Children’s Health of Carolina with pediatric clinics in Robeson, Hoke and Cumberland County.

Dr Bell has been married to Vicki (Coharie) for 35 years. They have two children, Tori (husband David) and Isaac (wife Peyton) and three grandchildren, Elena, Luca and Rosa.