Native Forward Scholars Fund, has been awarded the Real Leaders 2024 Impact Award under the leadership of CEO Angelique Albert. The accolade recognizes Native Forward and Albert’s impact, placing the nonprofit among the ranks of influential companies and organizations steering transformative change.

The 2024 honorees represent a distinguished cohort of sector leaders dedicated to driving impactful change. This recognition positions Native Forward among esteemed peers, joining the ranks of past awardees such as Patagonia, Seventh Generation, and Change.org.

Throughout her career devoted to the service and empowerment of Native students and communities, Angelique Albert has guided Native Forward Scholars Fund through a phase of unparalleled expansion in its 53-year-history. Guided by her direction, the organization has not only seen a remarkable fourfold increase in revenue but has also broadened its scope of services. In addition to scholarships, Native Forward’s initiatives now encompass emergency funding and personalized mentoring that extends throughout the entirety of students’ college journeys.

“To stand among the remarkable leaders recognized by Real Leaders is a testament to dedication of our team at Native Forward Scholars Fund. Our work extends beyond scholarships; it’s about nurturing dreams, fostering success, and amplifying the voices of those whose stories deserve to be heard,” said Albert. 

Native Forward awards up to $15 million in scholarships annually and has awarded more than $400 million in direct scholarships to over 22,000 Native students since its inception. Through scholarship funding and holistic support, Native Forward has increased the graduation rates of undergraduate students to 69%, compared to the national average of 41% for Native students, and has boosted the rate for graduate students to 95%. The organization’s alumni are among the most influential Native leaders in the U.S., including Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland; National Humanities Medal recipient Dr. Henrietta Mann; Pulitzer Prize finalist Tommy Orange; and Dr. Cynthia Chavez Lamar, Director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian.  

Albert was also named in NonProfit Times’ 2023 Power and Influence Top 50 list, awarded Women Worth Watching in Leadership by Profiles in Diversity Journal, and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors of the Johnson Scholarship Foundation. Albert also serves as a member of the Obama Foundation’s MBK Alliance Advisory Council and is an Advisory Member of Gonzaga Universities MBA-AIE Program.