Native American Heritage Month is a great time to show your support for Native American students in higher education. We invite you to share in the celebration and learn more about Indian Country with the fun articles, activities and blogs we have planned this month. We hope that you will visit our blog regularly to hear from our guest writers who all bring their unique Native perspective for your enjoyment and enlightenment.
This month we celebrate the diverse and rich cultures of the hundreds of unique Native Nations. The Native American population is growing at an astonishing rate. In the last U.S. Census report from 2010, the Native population, including those of mixed heritage, grew more than 26% to just over 5.2 million. In contrast, the total population in the United States grew by less than 10%.
It’s interesting to think that the Native population has grown so much in the last decade. After centuries of termination policies meant to “kill the Indian, save the man,” Native People are thriving in today’s world. There has been a resurgence of Indigenous knowledge and the tribal colleges and universities have been at the forefront of the battle to retain cultural knowledge and revive Native America’s teachings. Today, we have language immersion schools and colleges based in reservation communities supporting and educating the next generation of Native leaders.
But there is still much work to be done. Over the last three decades the number of Natives with college degrees has doubled, while still half that of the U.S. population as a whole, it is encouraging to see the progress. The American Indian College Fund (the Fund) holds an important place in securing the future for our Native youth by ensuring they are educated for tomorrow’s world.
By helping Native scholars get a hand up with finances for college, the Fund supports and encourages Native youth to follow their dreams by earning a college degree that they otherwise might not be able to afford. The Fund works closely with institutions of higher education to promote and award more than 4,000 scholarships annually. With your help, this number will continue to grow.
This November, we at the Fund challenge you to learn more about the unique and special Native Nations that have enriched our lives, celebrate Native ways and enjoy the rich and diverse cultural spectrum from the Seminoles of Florida to the Pomo of California and everyone in between!
DOUBLE YOUR DONATION! In honor of Native American Heritage Month, one of our supporters has offered to match ALL gifts up to $5,000! That could be $10,000 more towards our goal of $35,000… Please do what you can to help us. DONATE HERE
Mod zi gidaz (Thank you in Arikara)
MeeGwitch, Neige (Thank you, friend in Ojibwe),
Michael Johnson (Hidatsa, Arikara and Ojibwe)
Manager of Annual Giving
