Cheryl Crazy Bull, Wacinyanpi Win (They Depend on Her), Sicangu Lakota, has served as President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund since 2012. A lifelong educator and community activist, she 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.
Her experience includes serving Sinte Gleska University as a faculty member, department chair, and Dean of Academic Affairs, and Vice-President of Administration; St. Francis Indian School as Chief Educational Officer; and 10 years as President of Northwest Indian College.
She is on the board of IllumiNative, an organization that focuses on a widespread accurate narrative about Indigenous people and Native Ways Federation, a national association of Native nonprofits.
Crazy Bull is a frequent public speaker and presenter about Indigenous education and issues with a focus on Indigenous higher education equity and place-based education. She was awarded 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.
