Guest Motivational Speaker 2025 /Award Presenter
Sarah Drake, MS, is an award-winning artist, author, speaker, and humanitarian based in Sauk Rapids, Minnesota — known for using art as a tool for global justice, cultural connection, and social change.
In 2024, she received the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for over 4,000 hours of community service — the majority on the African continent and across the Diaspora. Her leadership has spanned water and education access, arts and culture development, and event strategy through planning, fundraising, and deep participation.
Sarah’s artwork has made history twice — first when she exhibited in a Russian museum as part of the first American group invited to show there, and again when she became the first American selected for RIPO, an international juried art exhibition in Burkina Faso.
She is the founder and CEO of herARTS in Action, an international NGO dedicated to creating social change through art. She most recently:
- Co-created a pan-African women’s coalition for literacy
- Partnered on a solar well build that serves 130,000+ Burkinabè
- Founded the MN Black and African Author Festival during COVID-19
With nearly three decades of human rights work, Sarah’s art and programs reflect her deep commitment to marginalized communities. Her approach to DEIA is rooted in the intersection of race, gender, disability, and socio-economic status, and her work often bridges Africa–U.S. relations through creativity and culture.
Sarah is also the founder of Adapdom, a startup designing compression gloves that are functional, accessible, and stylish. Her newest business, You’re Just So Different, offers:
Art that speaks. Stories that connect. Belonging that transforms.
She holds a Master of Science in Social Responsibility and a Bachelor of Elective Studies with minors in Ethnic Studies and Geography from St. Cloud State University.
