Summit to spotlight innovation, investment, and opportunity across technology, healthcare, education, business, and more.
Click here for photos from the previous summit
Click here to register for the Summit
Marksville, LA – (September 1, 2025) – The Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana is proud to announce the Fourth Annual Louisiana Rural and Economic (LaRuE) Development Summit, taking place September 8–9, 2025, at Paragon Casino Resort. This highly anticipated summit, free and open to the public, will gather leaders in business, government, education, and community development to ignite rural innovation and growth.
This year’s program offers more than panels and keynotes; it’s an experience. Attendees will step into The Trading Post Exhibit Hall, featuring diverse vendors and resource booths, while the Wellness Roundup Health Fair, hosted by the Tunica-Biloxi Health Department and Rural Health Clinic, provides screenings, information, and interactive health and wellness resources.
Highlights include:
- Dynamic Panels & Speakers: Featuring a distinguished lineup of thought leaders and subject matter experts, including representatives from Governor Jeff Landry’s office, elected officials, industry innovators like Meta, and university leaders from ULL, LSUA, NSU, and Southern University.
- Expanded Exhibits & Vendors: Local businesses, nonprofit organizations, and resource partners showcasing opportunities and services for rural communities.
- Health & Wellness Fair: A full-day experience dedicated to empowering individuals and families with tools for healthier living.
- LaRuE Women’s Night (Sept. 8): A high-energy evening featuring keynote speakers including Dr. Lisa Vosper, Senator Heather Cloud, and Deidre Deculus Robert. The night will also showcase the Hidden Gem Award, affirmations from local queens, and the community entertainment celebrating women who lead, inspire, and uplift.
“LaRuE is about empowering people where they are,” said Marshall Pierite, Chairman of the Tunica Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana. “Too often, rural communities are told they must leave home to find opportunity. We reject that narrative. This summit is about building capacity in our own backyards so our people can thrive where their roots are planted.”
This year’s sessions will focus on a wide range of timely and critical issues, including:
- Economic Diversification
- Affordable Housing & Infrastructure Development
- Disaster Preparedness & Recovery for Rural Communities
- Workforce Development & Higher Education
- Mental Health & Resilience
- Cultivating Leadership in the Next Generation
- Agriculture & Agribusiness
- Policy & Government
- Art, Culture & Tourism
- Digital Transformation in Rural Communities
LaRuE is open to all economic development professionals, including entrepreneurs, small business owners, government officials, chambers of commerce, academic leaders, investors, students, and members of the public interested in rural development.
To register, visit www.larue.la
Registration for the 2025 LaRuE Summit is free and open to the public thanks to our generous sponsors. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. To learn more about how your organization can support the summit, visit www.larue.la/sponsors.
Guests staying at the Paragon Casino Resort can use the code and password “rus07gr” to receive the special conference lodging rate.
The Tunica Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana has long supported and encouraged economic development among Native Americans, particularly in underserved and rural communities across the state.
For more information on the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana, visit https://www.tunicabiloxi.org/.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Lenox Hill
About the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana
The Tunica-Biloxi people first appeared in the Mississippi Valley. In the late 1700s, they settled near south of Marksville in east-central Louisiana. Today, the Tribe has more than 1,600 members throughout the United States, primarily in Louisiana, Texas, and Illinois. The modern Tunica-Biloxi Tribe is composed of Tunica, Biloxi (a Siouan-speaking people from the Gulf coast), Ofo (also a Siouan people), Avoyel (a Natchezan people), and Choctaw. Although ancestry is typically intermixed through marriages, tribal members typically identify either as Tunica, Biloxi or Biloxi-Choctaw. The tribe owns and operates the Paragon Casino Resort, the largest employer in Central Louisiana. For more information about the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana, visit https://www.tunicabiloxi.org/ and “like” us on Facebook.