Staff

Jessa Rae Growing Thunder comes from the Fort Peck Assiniboine (Nakoda)/Sioux (Dakota) tribes. She is a third-generation beadwork and quillwork artist, educator, and historian. Jessa Rae has a background in community-based methodologies, networking, facilitation, advocacy, and project development and management.

Prior to joining NAP, she was the Indigenous Exchange Advisor at Inter-American Foundation where she led the development of a congressionally mandated initiative that fosters sustainable relationships for Native American communities and Indigenous communities in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Jessa Rae holds a M.A. and Ph.D. in Native American Studies from the University of California, Davis.