About Me

Crisosto Apache is originally from Mescalero, New Mexico (US), on the Mescalero Apache Reservation, and currently lives in the Denver metro area in Colorado. Crisosto is also the current and 11th Poet Laureate for Colorado (2026-27), appointed by Governor Jared Polis on Wednesday, January 28, 2026. Crisosto is Mescalero Apache, Chiricahua Apache, and Diné (Navajo) of the 'Áshįįhí (Salt Clan) born for the Kinyaa'áanii (Towering House Clan), and are Associate Professor of English writing and Creative writing at the Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design. Apache holds an MFA from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. 

Crisosto’s debut collection, GENESIS (Lost Alphabet), is out of print. Crisosto’s second poetry collection is Ghostword (Gnashing Teeth Publication), winner of the 2023 Betty Berzon Emerging Writers Award and a finalist for the Colorado Authors League Award in poetry. Apache's newest poetry is(ness) also published by Gnashing Teeth in 2025. Crisosto is a three-time Push Cart Prize nominee and is currently an editor-at-large for The Offing Magazine.

Crisosto continues to advocate for the Native American Indigenous LGBTQ / Two-spirit identity. Apache's dedication to poetry remains a passion, and teaching poetry to the youth is a continued goal.