2008 Annual National Institute

15th Anniversary

Twenty-First Century Warriors: Understanding the Changing Faces and Needs of Native Students

Much is changing in the world of higher education for Native students. Institute presenters will explore through various research and scholarly perspectives the significant changes with Native student populations and the implications for college and university administrations, faculty and staff. What are the best practices in addressing emerging issues, challenges, and opportunities? Are institutions meeting student current needs in curricular, programmatic, and support services areas?

(A Professional Development Institute and Personal Retreat for Educators Serving Native American College and College-Bound Students)

SPONSORED BY
Lumina Foundation for Education
University of New Mexico
Stanford University
Buffalo State College
Yale University
University of Missouri
University of North Texas

Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa
Santa Ana Pueblo, NM
August 3-6, 2008

Opening Prayer
Joseph Suina, Ph.D., (Cochiti), Elder-in-Residence
Professor Emeritus, University of New Mexico

Opening Remarks/Introduction of Participants
Michael Hanitchak, (Choctaw/Chicksaw), Governing Council Chair
Director, Native American Program
Dartmouth College

PRESENTER: Diane R. Reyna, (Taos & Oke Owingeh), Director, Learning Support Center
Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, NM

Topic — "Icebreakers" followed by "Visual Mapping: Learning through Recall and Organization"

ABSTRACT: A workshop on the study method that assists students in translating written concepts, ideas and lectures into visual outlines for comprehension and learning.

BIO: Diane Reyna is from the Pueblos of Taos and Oke Owingeh in northern New Mexico. She is the Director of the Institute of American Indian Art 's Learning Support Center. Diane has applied experiential learning activities in her years of work with students in transition. She teaches Native Foundations for College Success within the General Education Program the Learning Support Center.

University of New Mexico Welcome Luncheon
Guest Speaker: Pamela Agoyo, (Cochiti/Santo Domingo/Ohkay Owingeh Pueblos), Director of American Indian Student Services & Special Assistant to the President for American Indian Affairs

PRESENTER: Stephanie Fryberg, Ph.D., (Tulalip Tribes)
Assistant Professor and Affiliate Faculty American Indian Studies
Department of Psychology, University of Arizona

Topic — "Creating Identity-Safe Classroom Contexts for American Indian Students"

ABSTRACT: This presentation will examine how to create and maintain identity-safe classroom contexts, explores whether these contexts have long-term benefits for academic engagement and achievement, particularly with respect to American Indian students, and assesses whether identity-safe contexts can be created where the individual’s group is underrepresented or not central to the culture of the institution.

BIO: Stephanie A. Fryberg (Tulalip, Ph.D., 2003, Stanford University) is Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology and Affiliate Faculty in American Indian Studies at the University of Arizona. Her primary research interests focus on how social representations of race, culture, and social class influence psychological well-being, physical health, and educational attainment. Recent publications include, "On being American Indian: Current and possible selves" (with H. R. Markus, in Journal of Self and Identity), "Racial ethnic self-schemas" (with D. Oyserman, M. Kemmelmeier, H. Brosh, and T. Hart-Johnson, in Social Psychology Quarterly), "The psychology of engagement with Indigenous identities: A cultural perspective" (with G. Adams, D. M. Garcia, and E. U. Delgado, in Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology), and "The possible selves of diverse adolescents: Content and function across gender, race and national origin" (with D. Oyserman, in Possible selves: Theory, research, and application). Manuscripts currently in press include "Models of education in American Indian, Asian American, and European American contexts" (with H. R. Markus) and "The Psychology of Invisibility" (with S. Townsend). Fryberg teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on cultural and social psychology.

PRESENTERS: Terri D. Slaughter, Senior Relationship Manager
Gates Millennium Scholars Program

Shawn Secatero, (Tohajiilee Navajo), Coordinator of Student Services, American Indian Graduate Center

Topic — "Scholarship Meets Student Development: Leadership Development at the Gates Millennium Scholars Program"

BIO: Terri D. Slaughter serves as a Senior Relationship Manager on the Leadership Development and Scholar Relations Team with the Gates Millennium Scholars Program. Terri joined GMS after a more than 10-year career in higher education administration. Among other roles within student affairs, Terri has served as the Director of Co-Curricular Programs and the College Center at Bloomfield College and an Assistant Director of Residence Life and Director of Bohn Hall at Montclair State University. An alumna of Michigan State University, Terri holds a Master of Arts degree in Student Affairs Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in English. Among her chief areas of research and interest are executive and student leadership, human and organizational learning, and college and university transition and retention of students of color.

BIO: Shawn Secatero serves as the Coordinator of Student Services at the American Indian Graduate Center Gates Millennium Scholars Program and is also completing his completing his doctorate degree in Language, Literacy and Sociocultural Studies at the University of New Mexico. Secatero provides academic intervention services to AIGCS scholars and is a primary steering member of the Native American Male Initiative to recruit and retain Native males in higher education. Secatero’s background includes working as a career counselor, bilingual program director, journalist, Native leadership researcher, and language arts teacher. His academic credentials include earning four degrees from the University of New Mexico which include a B.A. in Journalism, an M.A. in Secondary Education, a teaching certificate in Language Arts/TESOL/Bilingual Education, and an Educational Specialist degree in educational leadership and administration. Secatero’s doctoral study will encompass narrative stories from American Indian graduate students and their words of wisdom, academic experiences, and preparation in attaining a graduate degree.

Sunrise Ceremony and Prayer
Joseph Suina, Ph.D., (Cochiti), Elder-in-Residence
Professor Emeritus, University of New Mexico

Elder Reflection
Joseph Suina, Ph.D., (Cochiti), Elder-in-Residence
Professor Emeritus, University of New Mexico

PRESENTER 1: Timothy R. Ecklund, Ph.D, Associate Vice President for Campus Life, Buffalo State College

Amy L. Reynolds, Assistant Professor

Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology
University at Buffalo

Topic — “How College Affects American Indian Students"

ABSTRACT: Research has shown that American Indian students have unique experiences on college campuses. The ability of American Indian students, to adjust to campus life, including academic demands, may clearly be related to the experiences they have had with racism and other forms of discrimination and their resilience when faced with these and other challenges. This presentation will explore the results of a study of approximately 331 American Indian college students from the United States and Canada that examined the interaction among academic and cultural attitudes. The participants will be asked to give insights to how the results of this study apply to their work with indigenous students. Also, the participants will be asked to consider how this information will assist college student affairs professionals who are directly involved in working with American Indian students in providing culturally relevant programs and services. Programming and training implications for meeting the needs of American Indian students will be examined.

BIO: Timothy R. Ecklund is the Associate Vice President for Campus Life at Buffalo State College in Buffalo, New York. Tim has spent the past 20 years working in student affairs and exploring college student development. Most recently Tim received his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy at the University at Buffalo. His dissertation topic studied the relationship between psychosocial development and acculturation among American Indian college students. In addition to his doctoral work, Tim has worked to create appropriate student services for Native American students at the University at Buffalo and Buffalo State College where he established Native American student housing units. Tim has served as an adjunct professor in the Educational Leadership and Policy program at the University at Buffalo and in the Student Personnel Administration program at Buffalo State College where he has taught Student Development Theory for the past 10 years. Tim has also worked as a diversity consultant with Genesis Project Associates and the National Coalition Building Institute. He recently co-authored “Transforming the first-year experience for multiracial/bicultural students” in L. Rendon, M. Garcia, & D. Person (Eds.), Transforming the first-year of college for students of color (Monograph No. 38) (pp. 161-176).

BIO: Amy L. Reynolds is an assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology at the University at Buffalo. She received her doctorate in counseling psychology from Ohio State University and has been working in higher education as a psychologist and professor for the past 20 years. Her work as a scholar, teacher, and consultant focuses on multicultural competence in counseling and student affairs as well as college mental health issues. She has published over 25 journal articles and book chapters and made over 36 presentations at regional or national conferences. She is also one of the co-authors for Multicultural Competence in Student Affairs which was published by Jossey Bass in 2004.

PRESENTER 2: Justin Paul Guillory, Ph.D., (Nez Perce descendant), Northwest Indian College

Topic — “Diverse Pathways of "Giving Back" to Tribal Communities: Perceptions of Native American College Graduates"

ABSTRACT: There is a growing number of scholars who are focusing on Native American student "success" rather than failure. This paradigm shift has yielded some promising new findings with regard to understanding the experiences of academically successful Native students in higher education. Specifically, several studies revealed that the desire to "give back" to one's own tribal community was mentioned as a salient factor for students who persisted through college and completed their college degrees. The purpose of my dissertation was to explore the concept of "giving back" from a Native American perspective and the role it plays throughout the educational journeys of Native American degree recipients and beyond. This study was significant given that there are very few studies that specifically focus on the experiences of Native students after they have successfully graduated from college. A total of twelve participants with a bachelor’s degree from four-year and graduate institutions in the Pacific Northwest were interviewed. The participants in the study were loosely organized into three groups: Recent Graduates, Experienced Workers, and Respected Elders. Data analysis revealed intergenerational similarities and differences among the three groups relative to their K-12 years, undergraduate experiences and after degree attainment. Several persistence factors and barriers were also identified. This study demonstrated that the desire to give back to ones own tribal community, or Indian people in general, indeed played a critical role in the lives of the participants. However, for every rewarding experience that giving back provided, there were also numerous struggles in the process. The results of this study have implications for higher education institutions, faculty and administrators, recruitment/ retention specialists, tribal communities and Native students

BIO: Justin Guillory is currently serving as the Dean of Extended Campuses at Northwest Indian College. NWIC is a Tribal College located in the Pacific Northwest. He recently completed his doctoral dissertation in Higher Education Administration at Washington State University. He also earned a master’s degree in educational leadership from WSU in 2000. For three years he served as the graduate assistant for the Native American Student Center within the Office of Multicultural Student Services at WSU. Justin and his wife are proud parents of three young children. He was raised on the Nez Perce reservation in Lapwai, Idaho. He has a diverse ethnic background which includes African American, Native American (Nez Perce descendant) and Hispanic ancestry. A book chapter that he co-authored with Dr. Kelly Ward was recently published titled: “Tribal Colleges: Identity, Invisibility and Current Issues”, in Baez, B., Gasman, M., & Turner, C. S. (Eds). Understanding Minority Serving Institutions. SUNY Press. March 2008.

L U N C H

GUEST SPEAKERS

Geni Cowan, Ph.D., (Choctaw), Professor of Educational Leadership, California State University Sacramento

Liz Gilbert, Ed.D., Associate Professor, Community Health Education, University of Northern Colorado

Topic — “An Alternative Journey to College for Today's Native Student:The Tribal TANF Cohort Program at UNM"

ABSTRACT: In our consideration of today’s Native student – the 21st century warrior – we are reminded of the traditional leadership roles of our elders, who continue to lead us into a new era. Equipping our students with the skills and knowledge they need to be successful extends to ensuring that access to an education is available and facilitated for those who will carry forward the hopes and dreams and wisdom of tribal nations.

Approaching higher education and student support from an alternate perspective, Drs. Gilbert and Cowan worked with Navajo Nation leaders to design and facilitate a pathway to higher education for Navajo students who otherwise might have missed the opportunity to develop the skills and knowledge needed to help ensure the success and welfare of their tribe. The core of this program was to build on the experiential knowledge of these students while opening a pathway to them to participate in higher education. The University of New Mexico-Gallup provided the higher education environment, while the University of California-Davis worked to build on the foundation of the students’ professional experience.

The result is a group of 30 students – diverse in age, family structure, profession, aspirations, educational background and experience – who are nearing the end of a certificate program that has prepared them to pursue degrees. Specifically, these students have developed professional skills in a nontraditional way that have prepared them to compete in the 21st century labor market, as well as to engage in a 21st higher education.

PRESENTER: Louie Gong, M.Ed., (Nooksack), Educational Resources Coordinator, Muckleshoot Tribal College/Vice President of MAVIN Foundation/Project Lead for the Mixed Heritage Center

Topic — “Native Americans of Mixed Heritage: Thinking outside the Box about Serving Native Americans in Higher Education"

ABSTRACT: Census 2000 marked the first time people of mixed heritage could check more than one race box, and the subsequent surge of research into America's mixed heritage population revealed that the challenges of identity formation may lead to low self esteem, drop out, and depression. What does this mean for Native Americans, who are the more mixed than any other racial group and must navigate pathways to identity development that are complicated by federal policies such as blood quantum and the reservation system?

This discussion based workshop will provide an overview of contemporary activism that is often referred to as the "modern multiracial movement." It demonstrates the need to support Native Americans of mixed heritage at all education levels, and it describes the key role played by higher education in identity formation. Participants will learn key vocabulary for continuing the discussion of mixed heritage issues on their campus and gain knowledge of resources geared toward serving mixed heritage students and their families.

BIO: Louie Gong is Vice President of the MAVIN Foundation, one of America's leading organizations that addresses issues related to the mixed heritage experience. He is a Nooksack tribal member who was raised by his Native Grandmother and Chinese Grandfather within his tribal community. Since graduating from Western Washington University's School Counseling program in 1999, he has worked primarily with communities of color as a teacher, child and family therapist, and counseling program coordinator. In all these roles, and in his current position as Education Resource Coordinator for Muckleshoot Tribal College, Louie pushes for recognition of the mixed heritage experience in educational and social intervention programming. This value is also interwoven into his work as adjunct faculty for Northwest Indian College and Evergreen State College, where he teaches classes such as the "Native American Higher Education Experience." He also serves on the Executive Committee for the Washington State Native American Higher Education Consortium.

PRESENTER 1: Timothy R. Ecklund, Ph.D, Associate Vice President for Campus Life, Buffalo State College

Amy L. Reynolds, Assistant Professor

Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology
University at Buffalo

Topic — “How College Affects American Indian Students"

ABSTRACT: Research has shown that American Indian students have unique experiences on college campuses. The ability of American Indian students, to adjust to campus life, including academic demands, may clearly be related to the experiences they have had with racism and other forms of discrimination and their resilience when faced with these and other challenges. This presentation will explore the results of a study of approximately 331 American Indian college students from the United States and Canada that examined the interaction among academic and cultural attitudes. The participants will be asked to give insights to how the results of this study apply to their work with indigenous students. Also, the participants will be asked to consider how this information will assist college student affairs professionals who are directly involved in working with American Indian students in providing culturally relevant programs and services. Programming and training implications for meeting the needs of American Indian students will be examined.

BIO: Timothy R. Ecklund is the Associate Vice President for Campus Life at Buffalo State College in Buffalo, New York. Tim has spent the past 20 years working in student affairs and exploring college student development. Most recently Tim received his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy at the University at Buffalo. His dissertation topic studied the relationship between psychosocial development and acculturation among American Indian college students. In addition to his doctoral work, Tim has worked to create appropriate student services for Native American students at the University at Buffalo and Buffalo State College where he established Native American student housing units. Tim has served as an adjunct professor in the Educational Leadership and Policy program at the University at Buffalo and in the Student Personnel Administration program at Buffalo State College where he has taught Student Development Theory for the past 10 years. Tim has also worked as a diversity consultant with Genesis Project Associates and the National Coalition Building Institute. He recently co-authored “Transforming the first-year experience for multiracial/bicultural students” in L. Rendon, M. Garcia, & D. Person (Eds.), Transforming the first-year of college for students of color (Monograph No. 38) (pp. 161-176).

BIO: Amy L. Reynolds is an assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology at the University at Buffalo. She received her doctorate in counseling psychology from Ohio State University and has been working in higher education as a psychologist and professor for the past 20 years. Her work as a scholar, teacher, and consultant focuses on multicultural competence in counseling and student affairs as well as college mental health issues. She has published over 25 journal articles and book chapters and made over 36 presentations at regional or national conferences. She is also one of the co-authors for Multicultural Competence in Student Affairs which was published by Jossey Bass in 2004.

PRESENTER 2: Justin Paul Guillory, Ph.D., (Nez Perce descendant), Northwest Indian College

Topic — “Diverse Pathways of "Giving Back" to Tribal Communities: Perceptions of Native American College Graduates"

ABSTRACT: There is a growing number of scholars who are focusing on Native American student "success" rather than failure. This paradigm shift has yielded some promising new findings with regard to understanding the experiences of academically successful Native students in higher education. Specifically, several studies revealed that the desire to "give back" to one's own tribal community was mentioned as a salient factor for students who persisted through college and completed their college degrees. The purpose of my dissertation was to explore the concept of "giving back" from a Native American perspective and the role it plays throughout the educational journeys of Native American degree recipients and beyond. This study was significant given that there are very few studies that specifically focus on the experiences of Native students after they have successfully graduated from college. A total of twelve participants with a bachelor’s degree from four-year and graduate institutions in the Pacific Northwest were interviewed. The participants in the study were loosely organized into three groups: Recent Graduates, Experienced Workers, and Respected Elders. Data analysis revealed intergenerational similarities and differences among the three groups relative to their K-12 years, undergraduate experiences and after degree attainment. Several persistence factors and barriers were also identified. This study demonstrated that the desire to give back to ones own tribal community, or Indian people in general, indeed played a critical role in the lives of the participants. However, for every rewarding experience that giving back provided, there were also numerous struggles in the process. The results of this study have implications for higher education institutions, faculty and administrators, recruitment/ retention specialists, tribal communities and Native students.

BIO: Justin Guillory is currently serving as the Dean of Extended Campuses at Northwest Indian College. NWIC is a Tribal College located in the Pacific Northwest. He recently completed his doctoral dissertation in Higher Education Administration at Washington State University. He also earned a master’s degree in educational leadership from WSU in 2000. For three years he served as the graduate assistant for the Native American Student Center within the Office of Multicultural Student Services at WSU. Justin and his wife are proud parents of three young children. He was raised on the Nez Perce reservation in Lapwai, Idaho. He has a diverse ethnic background which includes African American, Native American (Nez Perce descendant) and Hispanic ancestry. A book chapter that he co-authored with Dr. Kelly Ward was recently published titled: “Tribal Colleges: Identity, Invisibility and Current Issues”, in Baez, B., Gasman, M., & Turner, C. S. (Eds). Understanding Minority Serving Institutions. SUNY Press. March 2008.

NETWORKING LUNCH

PRESENTER: Adrienne Thunder, M.S., (Ho-Chunk), Senior Advisor, Cross-College Advising Service
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Topic — “The Next Generation: Considerations for Future Native Student Affairs/Student Services Professionals"

ABSTRACT: The numbers of American Indian students enrolling in postsecondary education in the last forty years has increased dramatically, and in that time, some of the challenges facing American Indian students have changed (i.e. technology, tribes' investments in education, tribal colleges, etc.), though many have remained the same (e.g. institutional racism, lack of academic preparation, lack of financial resources).

Student services or student affairs professionals in the past four decades may not have trained specifically for this work, but many of today’s professionals working with Native students have had training in student development, counseling, educational policy or leadership, or other related disciplines. Professional organizations have emerged to help us share knowledge, pass on effective practices and promote further research. As the paradigm shifts in postsecondary education from liberal education to professional preparation and back again, the student services and student affairs professionals who work with Native American students will need to continue to develop a wide array of skills and resources to assist their students meet the challenges of campus life as well as the challenges of career preparation in a rapidly changing economy. This session will outline considerations for future Native American student services/student affairs professionals.

BIO: Adrienne Thunder (Ho-Chunk) serves as Senior Advisor at the Cross-College Advising Service at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Prior to that, she served for two years as the Native American Student Services Coordinator at the Madison Area Technical College. Currently, she is the Chair of the Native American and Tribal College Interest Group of the National Academic Advising Association and is Past Chair of the Native American Network of the American College Personnel Association. Along with her partner, J.P. Leary, she has presented on American Indian stereotypes in educational settings at various conferences, including the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education and the World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education. She received her Master's degree in Educational Administration from UW-Madison in 1997.

Completion of Institute Evaluation

Michael Hanitchak, Governing Council Chair