Stacy Leeds

Stacy Leeds is the Willard H. Pedrick Dean and Regents Professor of Law at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Arizona State University. She is a scholar of Indigenous law and policy and an experienced leader in law, higher education, economic development and conflict resolution. She holds law degrees from University of Wisconsin (LL.M.) and University of Tulsa (J.D.), a business degree from University of Tennessee (M.B.A)., and an undergraduate degree in history from Washington University in St. Louis (B.A.).

Leeds was the first Indigenous woman to serve as a law school dean. She served as dean of University of Arkansas School of Law (2011-2018) and as the inaugural Vice Chancellor for Economic Development, University of Arkansas (2017-2020). She has been a professor and administrator at University of Kansas and University of North Dakota, and a William H. Hastie Fellow at University of Wisconsin. She is an elected member of the American Law Institute and the American Philosophical Society. She is a recipient of the American Bar Association’s Spirit of Excellence Award and the Cherokee National Statesmanship Award.

Leeds prioritizes public service at the national and local level. She is a former Cherokee Nation Supreme Court Justice and currently serves as a founding board member for the Foundation for America’s Public Lands, a congressionally-chartered non-profit benefitting the Bureau of Land Management. 

Leeds is passionate about food, agriculture and wellness. She co-founded the Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative and now serves as President of the Board of Trustees for the Native American Agriculture Fund (a private, charitable trust serving Native farmers and ranchers created from the historic Keepseagle v. Vilsack settlement).

Leeds is a Muskogee Athletic Hall of Fame inductee in her hometown in Oklahoma. She was a two-sport NCAA athlete and still enjoys pickup basketball and running slow full and half marathons. She is a former Cherokee Nation Remember the Removal cyclist and enjoys travel, hiking and scuba diving.