About the Commissioner

Ms. Quanah Crossland Stamps is the Commissioner of the Administration for Native Americans (ANA).  Appointed by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the United States Senate in November 2002, Commissioner Stamps provides the executive leadership for ANA.  She manages a $45 million discretionary program that provides funding for social and economic development activities, cultural preservation and environmental enhancement to Tribes and community-based Native organizations. She manages more than 200 projects, oversees the administration of a $24 million revolving loan fund for the Native Hawaiian community; and oversees four national training and technical assistance contracts serving American Indians, Alaskan Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders on Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. 

Prior to her confirmation, Commissioner Stamps was a private consultant working with Tribal and foreign companies on competitive business strategies, and previously served as the Assistant Administrator for Native American Affairs at the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Commissioner Stamps is an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.  She holds a Masters Degree in International Commerce and Policy from George Mason University, and she lives in Arlington, Virginia with her husband Air Force Colonel Robert F. Stamps.

Intra-Departmental Council on Native American Affairs

Commissioner Stamps is the Chair of the Intra-Departmental Council on Native American Affairs (ICNAA) within the Department of Health and Human Services, and advises Secretary Leavitt on Native American issues. The Council is composed of 25 of the heads of the Department's major agencies.

The ICNAA is the Departmental focal point for all initiatives affecting Native people.

Under its Charter, the ICNAA coordinates and encourages the cooperation of the Department's and other federal agencies' resources for Native people. It also develops and implements a meaningful policy on Native American affairs for the entire Department. It ensures that this policy will be applied consistently throughout the Department and, where possible, throughout the Federal Government.