Student Ambassadors
Be a student leader and serve your community.
Student Ambassador Program
The American Indian College Fund Ambassador Program was established in 2015 to strengthen students’ and alumni personal and professional skills and to represent the College Fund.
Ambassador Program Details
The American Indian College Fund Ambassador Program was established in 2015 to create a mutually supportive relationship between the College Fund and selected scholarship recipients to serve as ambassadors and enhance professional skills. Program elements are designed to strengthen personal and professional voice and skills through active representation and reflection of the mission of the College Fund. Ambassadors use their voice to promote the College Fund to the general public and share their story of being an Indigenous scholar.
The program, as a form of practicum, aims to create knowledgeable College Fund community representatives to aid in public facing promotion, peer-to-peer resource sharing, and promote College Fund initiatives like scholarships both on-and-off Tribal College and University campuses. This program also aims to provide a pool of speakers and/or participants for College Fund educational and fundraising events across the country. It is a further intent that the training and representation of the College Fund at on- and off- campus events expands access to personal, professional, and academic opportunities. In this program, scholars can expect to build bonds with other Indigenous scholars and network through relationships at the College Fund.
Currently, there are 10 cohorts of scholars since the program’s inaugural 2015-2016 cohort. Over 100 Ambassadors have shared the story of their academic journey and how the American Indian College Fund has played a role in supporting them. Much like how for our scholars there are many ways to be knowledgeable, there are also many ways to be a College Fund Ambassador.
Read more about our Ambassadors Robin and Joaquin on the College Fund blog.
Hear from Past Ambassadors
Amanda Ruiz
Amanda Ruiz, 2020-2021 Ambassador cohort, lends her story to attendees of the 5th annual Summer of Success conference. She shares her dedication to her education and the perseverance needed to be a leader in her family and community. Her use of personal story to encourage Native American scholars are a vital part of her co-Keynote address.
Nessa Ankney
Nessa Ankney, 2023-2024 Ambassador cohort, was co-Keynote at the 5th annual Summer of Success conference in May 2024. She is open and sincere about her academic journey story while encouraging Native American scholars to be true to themselves. Her experience with utilizing resources and opportunities to continue her education is a must listen for any scholar.
American Indian College Fund Student Ambassadors 2024-2025 Cohort
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- Annalise Guthrie (Cherokee Nation), Haskell Indian Nations University 2020, University of Kansas 2025.
- Bridget Hoshont’omba (The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), Nebraska Indian Community College 2025.
- Cherish GrassRope (Lower Brule Sioux Tribe of the Lower Brule Reservation), Salish Kootenai College 2024, Gonzaga University 2026.
- Deanna Teller (Navajo Nation), Haskell Indian Nation University 2025.
- Elizabeth Crumm (Wichita and Affiliated Tribes [Wichita, Keechi, Waco, and Tawakonie]), Kansas State University 2025.
- Krista Goodluck (Navajo Nation), Navajo Technical University 2024.
- Lisa Aimsback (Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation of Montana), Blackfeet Community College 2025.
- Promise Lensing (Santee Sioux Nation), Sinte Gleska University 2025.
- Tasheena Egan (Navajo Nation), Tohono O’odham Community College 2024, University of Nevada-Reno 2026.
Student Blogs and Updates
Graduation: A Time to Celebrate Your Achievements and Culture
In 2019, the American Indian College Fund teamed with the Native American Rights Fund to gather content Native American students need to work with school administrations in advance of graduation to ensure they can celebrate their graduations in a traditional way. We have updated this blog for 2024 but many of the principles are still the same.
May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust Partners with American Indian College Fund to Support Native Student Veterans
The American Indian College Fund (College Fund) has received a $50,000 grant from the May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust to implement a six-month fellowship focused on empowering Native student veterans to success. The Naabaahii Ółta’í (Student Warrior): Native Student Veterans Peer-to-Peer Program is a mentorship opportunity that builds relationships between veterans based upon their shared experiences.
American Indian College Fund Launches “Make Native Voices Heard” Voting Campaign
Native Americans are more impacted by the law than any other group in the United States. Native students in higher education, or seeking a higher education, in particular are impacted by federal and state laws impacting funding for education, such as Pell Grants, student loans, and federal funding for tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), 70% of which comes from federal sources.
American Indian College Fund Awards Three-Year American Indian Law School Scholarship to Jade Araujo to Attend Harvard Law School
Jade Araujo, an enrolled member of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) in Massachusetts and a descendant of the Tlingit and Koyukon Athabascan tribes in Alaska, is the third person to have been awarded the American Indian College Fund Law School Scholarship. Araujo is a senior at Stanford University who will graduate in June with a degree in political science and will enter Harvard Law School in the fall. She is the daughter of Todd Araujo (Aquinnah Wampanoag) and Jaeleen Kookesh (Tlingit and Koyukon Athabascan).