Michelle Sarche

Michelle Sarche is a leading researcher and expert in Native American child development, parenting, and early care and education. She joined the Buffett Institute in 2024 as a project lead and professor. 

Trained as a clinical psychologist, Sarche is a Tribal citizen of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Ojibwe and has worked with Native American communities for more than 25 years to conduct research to improve access and quality in Tribal early childhood programs.

At the Institute, Sarche will continue her work with American Indian and Alaska Native communities focusing on children’s development, parenting, and early care environments such as Head Start, home visiting, and child care. Sarche also has an appointment as professor with tenure at the Munroe-Meyer Institute at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

Previously, she was a professor in the Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

Her current projects include the Tribal Early Childhood Research Center (TRC), the Native Children’s Research Exchange (NCRE) Conference and Scholars program, the Center for Indigenous Research Collaborations and Learning in Home Visiting (CIRCLE-HV), and the Community-Driven Indigenous Research, Cultural Strengths and Leadership to Advance Equity in Substance Use Outcomes (CIRCLE) P50 Center of Excellence.

Throughout her career, she has brought in millions of dollars in grant and contract funding from sources such as the federal Administration for Children and Families, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Since 2018, Sarche has been an Aspen Institute Ascend Fellow.

Sarche graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and received her master’s and doctorate degrees from Loyola University Chicago.