Performing Department
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Non Technical Summary
Native American youth are among the least represented in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields in the US. There are Four Challenges that are common for students from Tribal communities: 1) a sense of belonging; 2) a vision and purpose; 3) college preparation, and 4) economic support to complete the degree. The University of Arkansas initiated Phase 1 of the "Life from the Land" initiative for recruiting and retaining through graduation students from Native American communities in 2023. Phase 1 included creation of a Native American Student Services (NASS) that is led by a director (Gregory Jones, member of the Shawnee Nation). The proposed Phase 2 of Life from the Land targets the four challenges through expanding access to Native American student internships as well as funding the NASS Director for two additional years (through 2029). The NASS Internships will be structured and implemented across three program elements: A) Undergraduate Research Experience, B) NASS Programmatic Support, and C) Cultural Connections. These three elements will complement existing programs, including the Native Youth in Food and Agriculture Leadership Summit, the undergraduate research experience in ecosystem services (Eco-REU), and the undergraduate internships in sustainability. Phase 1 of the Life from the Land initiative created at the University of Arkansas a Tribal Leadership Council, composed of representatives of participating Tribal Nation. We have collaborations across six Tribal Nations in Year 1 and will expand engagement across Indian Country in Phase 2 to engage twelve Tribal Nations by 2026. The Life from the Land elements will be integrated and expanded to provide a support community for Native American students at the University of Arkansas to address the Four Challenges. Phase 2 will support the goals of the University of Arkansas to increase new Native American student enrollment from 258 in 2022 to 600 Native American students by Fall 2029. Phase 2 will also support expanding the current six-year graduation rate from 63% for Native American students in 2022 to 95% by 2029. These goals are waypoints to a more comprehensive outcome of expanding opportunities for prosperity to Native American students in our region.
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 focus of Phase 2 is to further understand and intervene in the matrix of demands keeping Native American students from completing their degrees.Phase 2 will expand programs to address the Four Challenges: 1) a sense of belonging, 2) a vision or purpose for the degree, 3) college preparation, and 4) economic support, with the intent to expand Phase 1 efforts to provide a support community for Native American students at the University of Arkansas. In order to accomplish this goal, the Four Challenges will be addressed:Create a sense of belongingCoordinate with existing University of Arkansas groups serving Native American students, including:American Indian Science and Engineering SocietyNative American Student AssociationFurther develop offerings and services of the Native American Student Services (NASS) officePhysical office presence for the NASS Director and Indigenous Scholars loungeInitiate student events and activitiesDeveloping a Vision and a PurposeRecruit and engage Native American students through land based science and technology and other interestsDevelop a network of faculty and peer mentorsCreate links betweenstudents andTribal Governments for partnerships and career opportunitiesCollege PreparationWork with pilot partner education services representatives to identify opportunitiesExpand student academic pipelinesEconomic SupportCreate and implement a professional, paid internships program (Native American Student Internship Program, "NASIP")Focus on Criteria addressing higher risk studentsInternship CategoriesResearch ExperienceNative American Student Support ProgramCultural Connectivity Program
Project Methods
Methodology: The methodology for this project has been in development for more than a decade. Dr. Marty Matlock, the co-Principal Investigator on this project, was co-PI on an NSF-EPSCoR project led by Dr. Robert Franco, Kapi'olani Community College in Hawaii, titled "Connecting Indigenous and Western Knowledge Systems for Student Success in STEM". The University of Arkansas hosted five virtual listening circles with students, faculty, community members and tribal representatives from Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas, Kansas, Colorado, and Arkansas representing six federally recognized tribes and two tribal colleges in the region. Two conversations focused specifically on assets and challenges for Native American students across seven Native American Serving, Non-Tribal Institutions and tribal colleges. The outcomes of these listening sessions formed the basis of the methods proposed to address the Four Challenges in this project.The University of Arkansas established a Native American Student Services (NASS) program as part of the campus student services through Phase 1 of this program. The NASS program is coordinated by IFAI and led by the director, Gregory Jones of the Saawanooki Nation (Shawnee Tribe). The NASS program has initiated the Tribal Leadership Council with six partner Tribal Nation representatives to provide advice and guidance for program activities. The council includes a student representative to express the concerns of other students. The student representative will be selected from the Native American Student Association. One goal of Phase 2 is to expand Tribal representation as relationships grow. The leadership council convenes quarterly with three remote meetings and one in-person listening circle. The listening circle will engage students to provide feedback and will occur in April of each year and will culminate with a Blanket Ceremony to honor each Native American student graduating from UA.The University of Arkansas has partnered with the Cherokee Nation and the Muscogee Nation to pilot projects to address the Four Challenges based on the Life from the Land Initiative. We will approach each challenge from multiple perspectives, recognizing these four challenges are part of a more integrated social and economic context. Challenge activities implemented in Year 1 include assessing student participation across each activity over the four years of this project to quantify their impacts. We will adapt program activities as indicated through student engagement and Tribal consultations. The primary lead on these activities is the Director of NASS.