From the earliest partnerships between Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) and state colleges and universities, to the present-day independent bachelor's and master's degree teacher education programs, there has been a change in how higher education is designed to meet the uniquely Indigenous way that knowledge is exchanged, leading to greater self-determination. Taking the lead in the effort to bring this vitally important plan of study to Indian Country was Sinte Gleska University on the Rosebud Indian Reservation, which began offering a bachelor's degree in human services and elementary education in 1979. Since then, nine other TCUs have joined the ranks in teacher preparation programming, including Turtle Mountain Community College (TMCC), United Tribes Technical College (UTTC), Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College (NHSC), Sitting Bull College, Salish Kootenai College, College of Menominee Nation (CMN), Diné College, Haskell Indian Nations University, and Oglala Lakota College. This is a story of extreme challenge and struggle, but also of joy, hope, and sheer determination to make a better life for future generations. It speaks to the history and the future of American Indian teacher preparation. Testimony from the most remote reservation communities to bustling urban centers underscores a deeply Indigenous perspective. The storytellers are the education warriors at these tribal colleges who spend countless hours perfecting their instruction, advising students, searching for funding, striving for accreditation, and developing new programming opportunities so that their Native students can succeed as the new faces of Indian education in their homelands and beyond. At TCUs, departmental chairs, instructors, financial aid officers, counselors, registrars, and others work together with the students and are all part of the tribal college family. Their collective efforts set TCUs apart from mainstream post-secondary institutions. For tribal college personnel, each student represents a vested interest in the future of their tribe.