Performing Department
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Non Technical Summary
This project supports Native American pre-college and college students attending Oregon State University (OSU) and Chemeketa Community College (CCC) in experiential learning, internships, and financial support directly relevant to the stated funding priority of the New Beginnings for Tribal Students grant - to increase student retention, graduation and workforce success rates for Native American students.Primary project objectives:1. strengthening the formal relationships between colleges and tribes through collaborative development of MOU's, and co-designed student engagement protocols informed by tribal goals and decolonizing methodologies;2. outreach education to pre-college Native youth to improve access and understanding of steps toward college entry, tuition, and cultural support resources on campus; and3. placement of Native college students in culturally-informed, mentored, paid internships with employers in forestry and natural resources.Supporting project elements include hiring a Program coordinator, integration of Ecampus for remote access, regular convening of a steering committee, scholarships, and participatory, culturally-responsive annual and ongoing program evaluation throughout the project period.OSU will work with primary CGI partner Chemeketa in this integrated education and extension project. Both schools have established working relationships with all (OSU) or some (Chemeketa) of the nine federally recognized tribes in the state of Oregon. While the project provides specific outreach and collaboration efforts focused on the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians, any student identifying as Native American will potentially be eligible for project engagement.
Animal Health Component
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Research Effort Categories
Basic
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Applied
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Developmental
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Goals / Objectives
The project's aim to continue improving the long-term socio-economic conditions for Native American students and Tribes in Oregon through collaboratively designed recruitment and retention strategies directly aligns with the OSU Strategic Plan 4.0 2019-2023Vision (i.e., Leadership among land grant universities in the integrated creation, sharing and application of knowledge for the betterment of humankind), and Mission (i.e., As a land grant institution committed to teaching, research, and outreach and engagement, Oregon State University promotes economic, social, cultural, and environmental progress for the people of Oregon, the nation, and the world).
Project Methods
High Impact Engagement :Evidence shows that high-impact practices, such as mentored internships, a key project component, help students meet their educational and personal objectives, persist to degree completion, and develop skills and competencies needed in the workplace (AAC&U, 2007; Barefoot, 1992; Kuh 2008; Swaner & Brownell, 2009). The gains from participating in collaborative learning and research affect most levels of learning outcomes for students, including critical thinking, attitudes toward literacy, cognition skills, and intercultural effectiveness (Kilgo et al. 2015). Additionally, these practices help close the equity gap for traditionally underserved students (e.g., low income, underrepresented, first- generation, among others).Unfortunately, underserved students tend to participate less in high-impact practices than other student cohorts (Swaner & Brownell, 2009, Tachine 2022). Additionally, students that have engaged in a mentored relationship with a faculty member are more likely to succeed in higher education and gain benefits that extend into the workplace (Kuh, 2008; Gallup 2014). Swaner and Brownell (2009) note that mentored undergraduate research is a high-impact practice that may be intentionally applied to underserved students. Mentors help guide students into learning by discovery and inquiry, rather than more passive knowledge transfers from faculty to students. Research done by Jesse, Northup and Withington (2015) identified that high impact practices, and in particular participatory action research, maintained a high correlation with Native American student success. This finding aligns with traditional Indigenous methods of education which emphasize experiential learning, experimentation, and mentorship from community knowledge keepers.Student Success: Evidence of experiential learning impacts on retention and graduation rates are provided through OSU's Undergraduate Student Success Initiative. These results show how differentstudent cohorts compare when they participate and do not participate in experiential learning (EL) activities such as internships. Data from fall 2006 through fall 2012, show that graduation rates for all students who engaged in an internship were 25-29% higher than the entire OSU cohort. Historically Underrepresented Minority (HURS) students who participated in an internship had up to a 32% higher graduation rate than non-EL HURS students. Pell Grant students in EL programs (including but not limited to internship experiences) show 31-34% higher graduation rates than Pell students who did not participate. These indicators are not specific to Native American students, but they are strong indicators regarding the impacts of co-curricular experiences. OSU is in the process of developing more robust ways to track and report experiential learning by students and assessing all types of experiential learning. We will be using cohort-based models to evaluate how different learning activities differentially affect students and student identities. Therefore, more robust use of retention, progression, graduation, career readiness, student well-being, job placement and other indicators of success. We anticipate students who participate in culturally relevant experiences will be differentially impacted compared to other types of experiences (such as research).