Dr. Catherine Montoya (Diné) is Dibé Łizhiní (Blacksheep) clan, born for Táchii’nii (Red Running Into The Water) clan, her maternal grandfather's clan is Haltsooí (Meadow People) and her paternal grandfather's clan is TŁ'ááschí'í (Red Bottom). She is from Tse'Da Tah Canyon near Lupton, Arizona on the Navajo Nation. Her husband, James Montoya, is from Katishtya (San Felipe Pueblo) and Isleta Pueblo.

Dr. Montoya received her Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Educational Leadership in the inaugural Native American Leadership in Education (NALE) cohort from the University of New Mexico. Dr. Montoya's educational background also includes earning a Masters of Public Administration (MPA) in Human Resource Management from the University of New Mexico and received her Bachelors (BA) in Native American Studies from Dartmouth. She has worked in higher education since 2004, first at the University of Notre Dame, then later came to the University of New Mexico in 2007. Catherine enjoys working with students, wants to continue to see students succeed, and to reach their goals of obtaining their degrees.