Achieving the Dream – Developing Data Capacity to Increase Success

Mar 10, 2017 | Blog, Our Programs

Students post with their research poster at the ATD conference.

Andreanna Benally, Data Entry & Survey Technician; Terrence Tso, Data Architect Specialist; Velveena Davis, Executive Director, Office of Institutional Planning & Reporting; Janeen Tapaha, Statistician Specialist, Office of Institutional Planning & Reporting pose at the conference with their research.

The Achieving the Dream (ATD) program helps networking colleges to improve student success by providing a menu of services to its colleges, including technical assistance, leadership, data coaching, and more. In addition, ATD hosts an annual DREAM conference where more than 2,000 leaders from 200 community colleges across the country gather. Attendees have the opportunity to share their personal experiences, attend workshops/sessions, meet speakers, and hear “how the nation’s top leaders are tackling the challenges of increasing student success.”

In 2013, the American Indian College Fund (the College Fund) created a three-year cohort of two tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) with support from the Kresge Foundation. The two TCUs chosen for support include Diné College and Salish Kootenai College. Diné College focused their work on Scaling Up Student Success and Salish Kootenai College focused on using data for decision-making.

This year the College Fund and Diné College attended the DREAM 2017 Pre-Conference to present their work. The session, titled “Developing Data Capacity to Increase Success for Native Students,” described the College Fund’s work with TCUs and the impact of programming through the initiatives.

Diné College’s presentation began with a Diné opening prayer and was followed by an introduction by President Dr. Charles “Monty” Roessel of Diné College. The presentation focused how they incorporated the ATD programs and their educational philosophy “Sa’ah Naaghai Bik’eh Hozhoo”, the Diné traditional living system and the Diné traditions, into their college’s processes.

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