ATD Tribal College and University Programs
In 2017, 33 tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) became part of the Achieving the Dream Network. Like other colleges in the ATD Network, they are building their data capacity and implementing evidence-based reforms. In addition to providing quality education, TCUs have the unique mission of nation building. Two organizations, The American Indian Higher Education Consortium and the American Indian College Fund support Native American student success and communities of learning and are key partners in our work.
WHY
Tribal Colleges and Universities, located on or near Native American reservations, serve a population that is one of the most underrepresented in higher education today: Native American students from rural areas. Only 14 percent of Native Americans hold a bachelor’s degree. Tribal Colleges are uniquely qualified to change this.
WHAT
In addition to data and leadership coaching services, six TCUs are participating in a Holistic Student Supports Project. ATD also manages a community of practice for TCUs so they can share their learning and experiences in transformational change.
Watch this webinar to learn ways your institution can support Native American Student success on your campus.
CONTACT US
Contact Cindy Lopez, ATD Director of Tribal College and University Programs, clopez@achievingthedream.org if you would like more information about our work with the TCUs.
Blogs
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Press Releases
Who's Involved
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Colleges
- Aaniiih Nakoda College
- Bay Mills Community College
- Blackfeet Community College
- Cankdeska Cikana Community College
- Chief Dull Knife College
- College of Menominee Nation
- College of the Muscogee Nation
- Diné College
- Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College
- Fort Peck Community College
- Haskell Indian Nations University
- Iḷisaġvik College
- Institute of American Indian Arts
- Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College
- Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe College
- Leech Lake Tribal College
- Little Big Horn College
- Little Priest Tribal College
- Navajo Technical University
- Nebraska Indian Community College
- Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College
- Oglala Lakota College
- Red Lake Nation College
- Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College
- Salish Kootenai College
- Sinte Gleska University
- Sisseton Wahpeton College
- Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute
- Stone Child College
- Tohono O'odham Community College
- Turtle Mountain Community College
- United Tribes Technical College
- White Earth Tribal and Community College
Resources
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This technical brief was developed in partnership with Achieving the Dream and Nebraska Indian Community College.
In 2019, Nebraska Indian Community College (NICC) joined the National Student ClearinghousePostsecondary Data Partnership (PDP).
This technical brief will discuss an approach to prepare Postsecondary Data Partnership (PDP) data collections that consist of the development of both term cohort files and course files.
The process utilized course and cohort file templates provided by National Student Clearinghouse, query extractions developed by the Empower representative, data cleaning by the institution’s registrar, and further processing by the Achieving the Dream (ATD) data coach, utilizing SAS software which is useful for processing and merging files. The data preparation approach was employed by NICC during the initial PDP data collection in the fall of 2019 and yielded successful participation in the PDP. This brief can be used as an approach for data preparation for the PDP data collection process.
Resource Files
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atd_facilitating_pdp_data_submissions_technical_brief.pdf542.59 KB 
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This case study was developed in partnership with Achieving the Dream and Nebraska Indian Community College.In the fall of 2019, Nebraska Indian Community College became the first tribal college to participate in a new data service of the National Student Clearinghouse called the Postsecondary Data Partnership (PDP).
A small college with high aspirations for its students, NICC was in the process of building data capacity and adopting data-driven decision making to improve student retention and outcomes. The college leadership was drawn to the potential trove of actionable information on current and former students that only the PDP could produce. Plus, with the data to be delivered in interactive dashboards, the college would be saved from having to arduously build its own dashboards. The PDP would make it easy to release and act upon the stories the data might hold. The following case study describes how the NICC made it happen.
Resource Files
Attachment Size ATD Leveraging Partnerships Case Study833.38 KB 
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Thirty-five accredited Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) operate in the United States. Most students who attend these unique, tribally and federally chartered institutions are American Indian or Alaska Native—populations that have been significantly underserved by the U.S. higher education system.
This document contains stories from 20 of the TCUs.
TCUs are unique educational institutions—they provide a quality education to students; they work to preserve and revitalize their respective tribal language and culture; and they empower strong families and resilient communities. Education at TCUs occurs from an Indigenous perspective—a worldview that ensures relevancy to their tribal communities and broadens the impact of their programs. We have learned much from this partnership in how to support all students. We are confident you will be inspired by their stories.
Resource Files
Attachment Size project_success_improving_persistence_and_completion_of_native_american_students.pdf5.46 MB 
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