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New American Indian council invites tribal nations to join

La Monica Everett-Haynes

With plans to remedy years of low retention rates among American Indian students, UA's Native American Student Affairs center met with its new council of Arizona's tribal nations Friday to discuss possible intervention.

UA statistics show that American Indians had the lowest enrollment of ethnic groups last year with 2.2 percent. Of the total enrollment, African Americans were 2.7 percent, Asian or Pacific Islanders were 5.2, Hispanics were 12.9 percent and whites were 67.6 of the student population.

"Recruitment is up by 60 to 70 percent over the last fifteen years," said Bruce Meyers, director of Native American Student Affairs. "But of the first year retention of 589, about 42 percent dropped out."

The Joint American Indian Recruitment and Retention Advisory Council - consisting of representatives from the center and tribal nations - discussed intervention for American Indian recruitment and retention.

"We have united to provide students more services but each center is very unique - each center has very similar needs and some are very different," said Lynette Cook-Francis, director of Department of Multicultural Services and Programs.

Cook-Francis said the council is "composed of old entities that have been around for a long time to provide better services - as in strength in numbers - for students."

Of the discussion about possible moves toward intervention, the council suggested additional funding and a higher representation from tribal nations.

"You are the education leaders of our community," said Mary Jo Fox, associate director of the American Indian Studies Program, to 10 of the 21 tribal nations invited. "You have a lot of knowledge and insight about Native American students."

The majority of the tribal nations present have fewer than 20 University of Arizona students represented on campus. The Navajo Nation was the exception with about 250 students.

Fox added that the Arizona tribal nations should act as guides toward recruiting, retaining and graduating American Indian students.

Members were also introduced to information about a $20,000 scholarship awarded to the center from National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

"NASA gave money to the Natives Homeland Project that was run out of the University of Mexico and there was some year-end money and we just applied for it," Meyers said after the meeting.

"The archeological staff will see how the ancestors raised their food," said Gary Christopherson, specialist for the Center for Applied Spatial Analysis to the council. "Combined with spatial technologies, it can be used to save the homelands."

Meyers also said that the technologies would be a help to American Indian students who hoped to return to help their reservations by "developing a trained man power source for tomorrow."

"Eighty percent of our students say they want to go back and help their people but unless they have the skills, they may go home to unemployment," Meyers said, adding that the scholarship was the type of funding needed to strengthen the educational development in American Indian students.

After a two-hour presentation on American Indian retention and graduation rates to the tribal nations, the meeting was adjourned without electing officers for the council.

"I think the need is evident here - hopefully, we'll address those needs at some time," said Fred Ferrera, representative from the San Carlos Apache Nation. "Once we get a consistency to the meetings, we can vote for officers."

Meyers, who said the tribal representation was positive, took notice of the eleven tribes who did not show.

"A lot of them didn't get appointments in time (or) travel arrangements in time," Meyers said. "A lot of tribes have their own bureaucracies so now that this committee has an advisory council and the backing of the President (Peter Likins), I think that sends a loud message to the tribes."

Meyers added that tribal participation was vital, whether their students are counted for in the university's student body.

"We're entrusted in recruiting students in the tribes so we need to get those tribes, to work with those tribes, because they need to work with us to recruit those students," Meyers said.

"If we're trying to up our numbers, it's important to have tribes that don't have any students here," he said. "They would be the ones that should be concerned, if they don't have any students going to college at all. They should be the ones that have the best interest in recruitment and retention."