Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors is made up of dedicated and passionate individuals—leaders, mentors, elders, and advocates—united in their commitment to guiding Sacred Healing Circle’s mission and nurturing Indigenous communities around the world. Each volunteer offers their time and expertise as needed.
We wish to thank Theresa Two Bulls for all of her work over the years in helping to develop and shape these programs. We will carry your work forward. We also wish to thank Loretta Afraid of Bear-Cook for the decades of invaluable guidance and vision she has provided in support of Sacred Healing Circle’s mission. Mitákuye Oyás'iÅ‹.
Dr. Yvette Running Horse Collin
Board of Directors
Executive Director
Dr. Yvette Running Horse Collin has served as the Executive Director of Sacred Healing Circle since our inception. She is currently the Principal Science Officer for Taku ŠkaÅ‹ ŠkaÅ‹ Wasakliyapi: Global Institute of Traditional Sciences, which is headquartered in the Black Hills of South Dakota. She is an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe (OST). Dr. Running Horse Collin is an award-winning journalist, and has held various executive positions at non-profit institutions around the United States. She has advised state, federal and Fortune 100 organizations on Native American policy. She lectures extensively throughout the United States and internationally on her people’s traditions and history surrounding the horse at academic and Native leadership conferences such as the World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education (WIPCE), the Canadian Indigenous/Native Studies Association (CINSA), the Alaska Native Studies Conference, and Standing Rock Sioux Nation’s Prophecy of the Grandfather’s Conference.
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In January 2023, Dr. Yvette Running Horse Collin completed her post-doctoral work in ancient horse genomics as a Marie Skłodoska Curie Fellow at the Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse in Toulouse, France. In May 2017, she received her doctorate in Indigenous Studies from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where she graduated with Honors (Phi Kappa Phi and Golden Key). Her research in Alaska focused on the historical, cultural and spiritual relationship between the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas and the horse. Dr. Running Horse Collin received her Joint M.A. from New York University and her B.A. from The Johns Hopkins University. She practices the traditional ways of her Ancestors and is a wife, mother, and grandmother.​​​
Sean Collin
Board of Directors
Secretary
Sean Collin has spent 33 years in the field of global law and management. He is admitted to practice law in three countries, and he has lectured at universities, institutes, and/or professional seminars in more than 20 countries. He has worked on matters in over 70 countries. Sean holds an economics and law degree (with honors) from Otago University in New Zealand, and an LLM (with distinction) from Georgetown University.
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Sean is Vice President of Product & IP for Elastic NV, a publicly traded software company headquartered in Silicon Valley. He is the recipient of multiple awards and recognitions for his work in the field and is a frequent speaker at international professional conferences. Sean has served on the board of and aided numerous non-profit organizations, both within the United States and internationally, for decades. He has been an accredited United Nations NGO Representative in Geneva and New York. He descends from numerous Native American tribes and practices the traditional ways of his ancestors.
Jim Stephens
Board of Directors
Board Member
Jim Stephens is of European and Choctaw descent. He has a strong background in economic development, and a broad range of experience in commercial real estate marketing and management. His career and experience in these fields span more than four decades. He has a degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Texas at Arlington, and a degree in Business Administration from Texas Christian University. Jim serves on a number of boards and councils, including the Oklahoma Heritage Horse Sanctuary and the Southwest Spanish Mustang Association. He is also the owner and founder of Chahta Isuba Ranch and the Hungry Horse Café, both of which were founded to help to ensure the long term survival of the horses of Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, and to educate the public as to their historical and cultural significance.
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We are honored to have Jim Stephens as a Board Member.
Jacquelyn Cordova
Board of Directors
Board Member
Jacquelyn Córdova is dedicated to creating a healthy and sustainable world for today’s youth and future generations. She holds an M.A. in Indigenous Studies from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where her thesis focused on creating a model for ensuring the continuation and integrity of Indigenous knowledge and data transfers in today’s digital world.
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Through her professional work and personal interests, she has worked with companies and organizations such as Harvard University’s Center for Global Health Delivery, NASA, Analytical Mechanics Associates, SIAMIT and the Health Equity Action Lab, Sacred Way Sanctuary, IPWatch, and The Future is Indigenous Women.​ With over a decade of experience in youth programming and multimedia storytelling, Jacquelyn first joined the Sacred Healing Circle team as the Youth Program Coordinator and Media Specialist in 2016. She is now honored to serve in a Board Member capacity.
Jacquelyn is of Pueblo descent and follows the protocols and traditions her Oglala Lakota hunka relatives and Elders have passed on to her. She honors the teachings of Pte San Wiŋ and upholds the role and responsibility of being "a friend and ally to all life."
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