Cheryl Crazy Bull
President and CEO
Cheryl Crazy Bull
President & CEO
American Indian College Fund
303-426-8900
Board of Trustees Liaison and Senior Manager – President’s Office
Carrie Basgall cbasgall@collegefund.org
Cheryl Crazy Bull, Wacinyanpi Win (They Depend on Her), Sicangu Lakota, is President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund, a role she has held since 2012. A lifelong educator and community activist, Cheryl is an advocate for self-determination focused on Native voice, philosophy, and traditions as the heart of the people’s work in building prosperity for current and future generations.
Cheryl’s experience includes serving Sinte Gleska University on her home reservation in various academic and administrative roles for 17 years, serving St. Francis Indian School as Chief Educational Officer; and serving as President of Northwest Indian College for ten years.
She is on the board of IllumiNative, an organization that focuses on a widespread accurate narrative about Indigenous people, Native Ways Federation, a national association of Native non-profits and the Brookings Institution Board of Trustees.
Cheryl is a frequent public speaker, presenter, and writer about Indigenous education and issues with a focus on indigenous higher education equity and place-based education. She has an honorary cultural degree from Sinte Gleska University, an honorary doctorate from Seattle University, and other awards for her leadership as a Native educator and Native woman.
In 2015 she was named by Indian Country Today magazine as one of the 50 most influential people in Indian Country. In 2017 she was one of two American Indian women leaders honored by National Indian Women’s “Supporting Each Other” group. The Native American Finance Officers Association honored her with a Lifetime Achievement Award in October 2019. In March of 2020, CBS paid tribute to Crazy Bull, along with six other women, as an example of what it means to challenge and overcome stereotypes and biases in their industries as part of a series of CBS CARES public service announcements in primetime on the CBS Television Network. Working Mother Media named her their Legacy Awardee at their Multicultural Women’s Conference in July of 2020.
In 2021 the Mitchell Museum of the American Indian in Evanston, Illinois honored Crazy Bull with its Elizabeth Seabury Mitchell Awardee for exemplary service and philanthropic giving in promoting American Indian culture and Global MindED, a non-profit organization dedicated to closing the equity gap by creating a diverse talent pipeline through role models, mentors, and internships, named her as its 2021 Inclusive Leader Awardee.
For her work with student access to higher education and with tribal communities, Cheryl was recognized by the Bank of America as one of six Neighborhood Builders Social Equality Awardees in 2023.
From the President
Read important updates from the President’s blogs.
Back-to-School
Cheryl Crazy Bull, CEO and President of the American Indian College Fund shares how important tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) are and how critical it is for mainstream institutions to have support readily available for Native students.
Join the American Indian College Fund in Support of the Indian Child Welfare Act: Vital to Native Culture, Identity, and Sovereignty
On November 9, the United States Supreme Court will hear oral arguments of Haaland v. Brackeen, the case concerning the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). The stakes are high. The Supreme Court’s decision will ultimately determine whether the 44-year-old law that ensures Native children have the legal right to remain connected to their familial network, culture, and community will remain intact.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day is Every Day
Monday marks Indigenous Peoples’ Day, thanks to the tireless work of Indigenous advocates and allies who have worked to secure its recognition by municipalities, states, and the nation (although still not a federal holiday, Indigenous Peoples’ Day is a federally recognized holiday). Native Peoples were always here—at the time of contact—and now, thanks to the tenacity and resilience of our ancestors and the advocacy of our people today. When we celebrate Native heritage, cultures, traditions, and people today, we remember our ancestors’ many sacrifices and soberly reflect on the impact colonialism had on our people and our ways of living.
Featured Reports
A Landscape Analysis Illustrating How TCUs Can Leverage Assessment to Drive Their Missions
This report presents the findings from a landscape analysis looking at how TCUs have integrated culturally grounded practices in their assessment work. Relying on previously published literature, strategic documents shared on TCU websites, and first-hand interviews with TCU staff about their college’s current culturally grounded assessment practices (CAPs), a model identifying actions that TCUs take when engaging in CAPs work, along with the characteristics that accompany this work, was created. By sharing this report, we aim to highlight the potential for TCUs to leverage assessment to actualize and drive their cultural missions.
Alumni of Tribal Colleges and Universities Better Their Communities
The Tribal Colleges and Universities #RealCollege Survey
College Affordability Study
