Our mission
Our mission is to help our clients create communities where every family has a safe home and every person has a good job.
Our vision
We want to ensure:
● Native communities have more equitable access to private and public resources.
● Our internal and external partners have a shared understanding of and are collectively invested in supporting our clients’ visions.
● Indigenous voices are well-represented on our team and elevated in our work.
● We meet the needs of our team members as whole people, so that they can more effectively meet the needs of our clients.
Our values
Excellence: We hold ourselves to high standards in service of our clients and each other because we believe our work is important.
Service: We help our clients no matter the size of the task with an attitude of humility and kindness.
Resourcefulness: We are adaptable in the face of obstacles and do what it takes to help our clients reach their goals.
Compassion: We care about our colleagues and partners as whole people, supporting their needs and aspirations.
Joy: We are joyful in the work we do to serve Native communities.
Sovereignty: We follow the lead of our clients with open minds and a belief that their vision is best for their community.
Our commitment to sovereignty
In our work, we see Tribal nations meeting historical and current manifestations of colonization, oppression, and violence with resilience and strength. However, we recognize that this fight to maintain and strengthen Tribal sovereignty is constant.
Because we are not a Native-owned organization, it is imperative that we steadfastly acknowledge this context and continually educate ourselves about the realities faced by those we serve. We are committed to standing with Tribal nations as they face these challenges, and we are dedicated to supporting a future defined by them.
Letter from the CEO
First, I want to express my profound gratitude to our clients for placing their trust in us in 2025.
We are honored to work with the most committed and determined housing and economic development professionals and know that we owe our success to their partnership.
Second, I am deeply proud of our staff and their dedication to our mission. They are kind and creative and care about our clients above all else. I am honored to work with such incredible colleagues.
We were grateful to meet many of the strategic goals we set for ourselves in early 2025. Building
on several years of growth, we continued to deepen and expand our partnerships with Tribal communities across the country, supporting their housing and economic development priorities.
Together, we secured funding to build and rehabilitate 146 homes for Native American families. We were also thrilled to receive another award of $45 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocation, following the $35 million in 2024 and $50 million we received in 2023.
This funding makes it possible for our clients to continue to create good, well-paying jobs in Tribal nations all over the country in diverse industries from child care to hospitality to health care.
This was another year of growth in our company personnel as well. To meet continued growing demand for our services, we welcomed several new people to Travois, bringing our employee count to more than 50 dedicated team members.
As we navigate a more complex national political environment and a more volatile federal funding forecast, we keep our focus on providing our clients with the stability and expertise they need to build affordable housing and grow their economies.
We want to help our clients create communities where every family has a safe home and every person has a good job.
In our work, we see Native Nations meeting historical and current challenges with resilience and strength.
We recognize that this fight to maintain and strengthen Tribal sovereignty is constant. We are committed to standing with Tribal nations as they face these challenges. We are dedicated to supporting a future defined by them.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Glynn, CEO
Celebrating 30 years together
Travois celebrated a significant milestone in 2025: Thirty years of supporting Native communities as they build a future that is defined by them.
In 1995, our founders, David Bland and Marianne Roos, started our company with a mission to help Tribal nations access the country’s leading affordable housing resource.
David consulted on the first-ever Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) project in Indian Country,
establishing a business model built on trust and following the lead of the Native communities we serve.
During the three decades since our founding, we continuously evolved to meet the needs of our clients.
Our housing team expanded to serve Tribal nations in nearly two dozen states. We established an economic development team to help fund Tribal
Since 1995 $1.5B
297 Client developments
118 Native organizations
Funding for housing and economic development
$2.7B Total development
businesses, schools, health care facilities, and infrastructure projects.
Travois Architecture, originally created to provide culturally relevant affordable housing design, broadened its portfolio to include marketrate homes, community facilities, economic development projects, and more.
Our company’s branding also evolved. In 2025, we launched a new website, revealing a modern
Homes built or rehabilitated
9,303
logo, vibrant colors, and bold imagery. The new look reflects our optimism for the future and the joy we feel in working alongside our clients.
As much as Travois has changed since 1995, our core principles have not wavered. We are still committed to following our client’s lead and pulling the weight toward their goals for many years to come.
23 States 6,710
Jobs created
91 Architecture projects
Housing Development
In 2025, our housing development team continued its vital work of securing funding for affordable housing in Native communities.
The team secured $77 million in LIHTC equity across five housing projects totaling 146 homes. We closed two deals with Raymond James Affordable Housing Investments, two with Red Stone Equity Partners, and one with RBC Community Investments.
Our clients also secured over $19 million in grants, the most in a single year in our company’s history. With over $13.5 million in Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grants in 2025, our clients have now received $69 million in AHP awards.
Our clients also won five LIHTC awards from state housing agencies, which will develop 174 homes.
Among key 2025 highlights, we helped the Wiyot Tribe fund two $28.5 million apartment buildings to create 93 homes, and the Pyramid Lake Housing Authority in Nevada closed on its first LIHTC project to build 20 single-family homes.
2025 by the numbers
$76.9M Investor equity
5
LIHTC applications awarded
$19.3M Grant funding
146 Units to be built or rehabilitated
In May 2025, the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians celebrated the completion of Bi’du Khaale with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Our team played a key role in securing funding and designing the project, which features multigenerational housing and a community building for families and elders.
Bi’du Khaale | Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians | California
LDF CHA II | Lac du Flambeau Chippewa Housing Authority | Wisconsin
The Lac du Flambeau Chippewa Housing Authority completed two LIHTC developments in 2025, including 20 new single-family homes (pictured) and 24 rehabilitated homes.
Our team secured funding, provided architectural design services, and helped move families into the homes.
Asset Management and Compliance
The asset management and compliance team helped move more Native families into affordable homes than ever before, while disbursing millions in LIHTC equity and ensuring regulatory compliance.
In 2025, the team assisted our clients in moving 637 households into affordable housing, including 215 special needs households consisting of the elderly, military veterans, individuals with disabilities or substance use disorders, and those who were previously without housing.
To support the move-in process, the team meticulously reviewed nearly 9,500 tenant files, the most in our company’s history.
Additionally, the team successfully completed or was in the process of closing out 27 developments with state housing agencies, a crucial step in the LIHTC process.
Families moved into new homes
173 LIHTC projects supported 2025 by the numbers
9,492 Tenant files reviewed 637
$66.1M LIHTC equity disbursed
Architecture
Our architecture firm worked on its largest, smallest, and longest projects ever in 2025, reflecting the firm’s increasingly diverse portfolio.
Gou’wik Hou Daqh, a complex multifamily project by the Wiyot Tribe, rises six stories in Eureka, California, while small homes designed for the Tohono O’odham Ki:Ki Association in Arizona measure 24 feet wide. We also completed marketrate apartments for Mille Lacs Corporate Ventures, the longest project in our portfolio at 460 feet.
The firm also rebranded as Travois Architecture, having previously operated under Travois Design and Construction Services in many states.
The new branding emphasizes the team’s services beyond housing, including commercial spaces, community buildings, and public amenities serving Indian Country.
Significantly, every project our architecture clients submitted for bidding returned under budget in 2025, highlighting our commitment to designing not only culturally relevant but feasible projects.
2025 by the numbers
10
Bid sets completed, enabling construction to move forward
137
Certificates of occupancy issued
132
Site visits to document progress
100%
Projects out to bid returned under budget
Tribal Economy Business Incubators | Mille Lac Corporate Ventures | Minnesota
Travois Architecture partnered with Mille Lacs Corporate Ventures to design Tribal Economy Business Incubators, which are commercial spaces that support local entrepreneurs. The projects in Onamia and Hinckley, Minnesota completed construction in 2025.
Economic Development
Our economic development team supported nearly $108 million in Tribal projects by filling critical gaps in funding through the NMTC program.
The team secured $21.3 million in investor equity across six projects. The projects will create 185 full-time quality jobs and 240 construction jobs.
Key highlights included the first-ever for-sale housing NMTC project on trust land, which was developed by the Tohono O’odham Ki:Ki Association.
Additionally, the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority secured over $5.7 million for a wastewater treatment plant that serves 3,500 homes.
The NMTC program was also made permanent in federal law in 2025, solidifying the future of this important resource.
In December, the team secured an additional $45 million in tax credit allocation to support more Tribal businesses, health care initiatives, community facilities, and infrastructure projects.
The Citizen Potawatomi Nation celebrated the opening of the FireLake Hotel in Shawnee, Oklahoma, in 2025.
Our economic development team secured $6.6 million to support the 126-room hotel, which created 32 quality jobs and boosted tourism dollars for the Nation.
FireLake Hotel | Citizen Potawatomi Nation | Oklahoma
Training
In its second year, our training program grew significantly, with hundreds of Tribal housing professionals attending events to gain knowledge and expand their organizational capacity.
We trained 378 attendees from 53 Tribal organizations across 17 events held at our Kansas City office, regional locations, and on-site at Tribally Designated Housing Entities. Our training program included Certified Tribal Housing Professional (CTHP) certification events, as well as NSPIRE, HOTMA, and leadership development training.
Our CTHP curriculum is customized to teach Tribal housing staff how to use the LIHTC program alongside NAHASDA.
In 2025, we hosted regional CTHP certification events in Nashville and Tempe, along with customized onsite trainings for clients unable to send employees to regional events. CTHP attendees boasted a 99% exam pass rate.
Additionally, attendees of our NSPIRE training events, which provide instruction on HUD’s updated property inspection rules, achieved a 98% exam pass rate.
2025 by the numbers
378 Attendees
53 Tribal organizations represented
17 Training events
99% CTHP exam pass rate
Sugar Maple Crossing | Mille Lacs Corporate Ventures | Minnesota
Travois Architecture provided design services for Mille Lacs Corporate Ventures’ Sugar Maple Crossing, a 40-unit marketrate multifamily development. Completed in 2025, the project in Hinckley, Minnesota, features one- to three-bedroom apartments, 20 garages, a fitness center, a laundry facility, and solar panels.
Annual Conference
During the Travois Annual Conference in Minneapolis, we celebrated our 30th anniversary in the state where our company was founded.
More than 225 professionals in Tribal housing and economic development representing over 40 organizations gathered for three days to network and learn new ways to support their communities.
2025 Travois Superhero Awards
Housing Professional of the Year
Darcy Padilla, Executive Director
Hoopa Valley Housing Authority
Haven of the Year
Issa Nameh, Senior Accountant
Pascua Yaqui Tribe
Project Team of the Year
Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe
Transformative Initiative of the Year
Mille Lacs Corporate Ventures
Highlights of the conference included a welcome reception at Chef Sean Sherman’s Owamni Restaurant, and a keynote address by poet Heid E. Erdrich.
We concluded the conference by celebrating excellence in Native housing and economic development with the Travois Superhero Awards.
Pillar of the Year
Yavapai-Apache Nation Tribal Housing’s Maintenance Department
Groundbreaking Team of the Year
Tuolumne Economic Development Authority
Economic Development Team of the Year
Big Fire Law & Policy Group
In the community
As a Certified B Corporation, we work to benefit people and the planet.
In 2025, we donated over $150,000 to local and national organizations, and our employees volunteered for more than 930 hours.
We purchased carbon offsets and renewable energy certificates to account for emissions
related to visiting clients and continued our office compost program to divert waste from landfills.
Additionally, Native-, minority-, and womenowned businesses made up 17% of our total spending on third-party suppliers for goods and services that are commercially sourced and within our procurement influence.* That reflects an 11% increase from 2024.
2025 by the numbers
$150K+
Donated to local and national organizations
88 MWh of Wind Energy Certificates (RECs) purchased
937 Hours volunteered by staff members
233
MT CO2e of business-related travel offset
$9,875
Donated through volunteer matching program
1,695 Pounds of compost diverted from landfills
Our employees
We believe in supporting our employees as whole people.
Not only is it the right thing to do but also enables us better serve clients.
Our company offers competitive benefits, a generous paid-time-off policy, paid professional development opportunities, an on-site daycare, and 16 weeks of paid parental leave for birthing parents to spend time with their new family member.
98%
We also host numerous company events, including volunteer days, staff outings, lunch and learns, and a wellness challenge focused on mental, emotional, and physical health.
Of total spending on Native, minority, or women vendors* 39% Decrease in greenhouse gas emissions from 2019 baseline
$72,737 Contributed to employee development and education 17%
Medical, dental and vision insurance is paid by Travois
10% Of employee salary contributed to 401(K) annually
16 Weeks paid parental leave for birthing parents, 12 weeks for partners
You know where to go. We’ll pull the weight.
travois.com