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Tribal Colleges

This series from the Center for American Progress and the American Indian College Fund explores the essential role of Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) in Native American and rural vitality.

A group of SKC students prepare for their graduation ceremony.
A group of students prepare for their graduation ceremony at at Salish Kootenai College in Pablo, Montana, on June 4, 2022. (U.S. Department of Education)

Higher Education, Rural America

Indigenous educators built this sector of 35 accredited institutions on a shoestring over the past 50 years. TCUs today educate students for a broad spectrum of careers while also serving as centers of their communities, whether that means feeding families hit hard by the pandemic, teaching Native languages and traditional practices such as rice harvesting, or giving elders technology skills to email or FaceTime with faraway grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Policymakers have increasingly recognized the importance of TCUs, particularly in light of the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on Indigenous communities. But there is more to be done to support these institutions in meeting their full potential to serve Indian Country as well as the non-Native rural communities they serve.

In this series

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At Navajo Technical University, a World-Class Laboratory Is Building Native American Manufacturing Capacity Article
2022 Navajo Tech graduate Marcie Vandever works at a computer.

At Navajo Technical University, a World-Class Laboratory Is Building Native American Manufacturing Capacity

In the third and final installment in a series on Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), the Center for American Progress and American Indian College Fund examine how a Tribal university in New Mexico is creating engineering and advanced manufacturing career opportunities on the rural Navajo Nation.

Marcella Bombardieri, Dina M. Horwedel

A Minnesota Tribal College Teaches Law Enforcement in Effort To Put More Native Americans ‘Behind the Badge’ Article
Jamie Allen of the White Earth Police Department conducts a demonstration for LLTC students.

A Minnesota Tribal College Teaches Law Enforcement in Effort To Put More Native Americans ‘Behind the Badge’

In the second installment in a three-part series on Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), the Center for American Progress and American Indian College Fund look at Leech Lake Tribal College’s law enforcement degree program and the college’s work on cultural revitalization and basic needs insecurity.

Marcella Bombardieri, Dina M. Horwedel

For Native Americans, Tribal Colleges Tackle the ‘Present-Day Work of Our Ancestors’ Article
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona  delivers the commencement address at Salish Kootenai College.

For Native Americans, Tribal Colleges Tackle the ‘Present-Day Work of Our Ancestors’

In the first installment in a series on Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), the Center for American Progress and American Indian College Fund explore the essential role TCUs play in their communities and why investing in them should be a priority for policymakers.

Marcella Bombardieri, Dina M. Horwedel

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