Amber Annis, PhD

Dr. Amber Annis (Cheyenne River Lakota) is the Associate Vice President of Tribal Nation Relations and Native American Initiatives at the Minnesota Historical Society. She works with several departments and sites across MNHS to ensure that Native representation and content are developed in an accurate and appropriate manner. She also works on outreach to Native nations in Minnesota and beyond to strengthen the Historical Societies’ relationships with Tribal nations and communities. 

Amber is a citizen of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and works daily to ensure that resilient and positive representation of American Indian people are shown through the lens of sovereignty, culture, and contemporary issues. 

She has a long history as not only a public historian, but also as an educator, tribal nation liaison, collaborator, and community engagement specialist. Beyond her work at the Historical Society, Amber has spent the past several years as an instructor at Metropolitan State University and the University of Minnesota, teaching themes such as cultural awareness, contemporary Native identity, environmental justice and United States politics. She worked with the Honoring Nations program, which seeks to highlight examples of Native success across Indian Country. She is also a Native Governance Center Native Nation Rebuilder, where she has been trained in Indigenous leadership strategies. Amber also sits on the board of directors for the Tiwahe Foundation.

Amber holds a B.A. and M.A. in History and American Indian Studies from the University of North Dakota and a PhD in American Studies from the University of Minnesota.