Performing Department
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Non Technical Summary
The proposed project "Pathways for Tribal Students" is to expand the outreach and retention for American Indian/Alaska Native youth for the already established Tribal Students Program at the University of Nevada, Reno's - College of Agriculture, Biotechnology, and Natural Resources. In the last two year's the Tribal Students Program has become a well-recognized program and is one of its kind at the University. It has shown a 150% increase in recruitment contacts, 200% increase in program participation, averages an 80% retention rate, and has graduated six Native students.The project was developed based on institutional data on American Indian/Alaska Native students at the University of Nevada, Reno. The American Indian/Alaska Native enrollment does fluctuate at the University of Nevada, Reno and has increased from 2022. However, it has stayed somewhat stagnant for the past eight years. The Native American Waiver with the state colleges and universities has contributed to the increase, yet the retention of students has become problematic. Support services at the University are limited. This is where the Tribal Students Program has been instrumental in the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology, and Natural Resources. It is the only college/department within the University which provides outreach, recruitment, retention services, graduate school advisement, and job placement.The retention rate from Fall 2021 to Fall 2022 for first-year American Indian/Alaska Native students increased to 77% after three consecutive years. It declined again for the fall 2022 cohort (70%). Small group sizes often show much more variability from year to year because the outcome for one person has a much greater impact on group outcomes. The retention rate for American Indian/Alaska Native first year students showed a moderate increase from fall 2011 to 2015. However, there was a significant decrease between Fall 2017 and Fall 2018 graduation rates. Six-year graduation rates continue to increase, showing students are taking longer to complete degrees.
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
Expand recruitment nationwide and provide a pathway to Nevada's land grant university.Expand recruitment nationwide by providing events and trips to the University and learn about the College of Ag, Biotechnology, and Natural Resources degrees.Students will be given an opportunity to apply for scholarships through National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Native American Agriculture Fund, and other private and federal funding.Provide stipend travel to visit the University for out of state education departments and tribal colleges. Create a program with a cohort of American Indian teachers who wish to pursue and graduate with an interdisciplinary degree in Secondary Education and Agriculture Sciences or Environmental Sciences. Provide a cohort of students to enter the program Nevada Teach an interdisciplinary degree in Secondary Education and Agriculture Science or Environmental Science.Create a retention program for students in the cohort.Provide scholarships from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and other private donors.Partner with the Dean's Future Scholars program and other first-generation programs at the University which recruits, retains, and graduates students from underserved communities.Provide expertise, volunteers, and resources for tribal communities to embrace healthy living which can assist with recruitment of high school students and retention for college students. Hire an Outreach and Retention Coordinator who will provide extra support for high school and college students.Coordinate volunteers for projects (i.e. college and graduate students in the Tribal Students Program).Build a mentoring program for high school students with college students.
Project Methods
The mentoring program for the project "Pathways for Tribal Students" will benefit from an effective two-level mentorship program. In the first two years, high school students will have a peer mentor and college students will have a graduate student mentor. In their latter two years, college students will have a professional mentor. The current college mentoring program was developed by Dr. Kari Emm, using retention models such as Tinto (2017), the Culturally Engaging Campus Environments (CECE) model (2014), and the Family Education Model (Heaveyrunner & DeCelles, 2002). These models include family connections, goal setting, check ins, progress reports, and graduate and peer mentoring. Students will work with advisors and mentors to develop soft skills such as clear communication, time management, adaptability, critical thinking, networking, and problem-solving. The following are methods in acheiving successful student completion:Utilize successful proven techniques for recruiting American Indian/Alaska Native StudentsHost webinars and visits to tribal colleges and other tribal communities.Provide summer internships by collaborating with faculty and studentsBuild a recruitment plan for degreesCoordinate events for recruitmentCreate a scholarship reception recognizing students.Build transfer articulation agreements with community colleges, junior colleges, and tribal collegesPlan events every year which contribute to healthy living and student accomplishments.Develop a network of faculty and departments which support American Indian/Alaska Native students.Create a volunteer list for community events and participation.