Institutions

The College Fund supports Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) in their efforts to strengthen students, emergent leadership, education, language and culture, health and wellness, the environment, and so much more, all moving our mission of transforming Native lives and communities.

Our work in partnership with TCUs focuses on supporting our relatives from cradle to career and beyond. This institutional capacity-building work consists of supporting TCU grantee partners in co-visioning programming, technical support, professional development, research and networking opportunities, and program elements that directly support students’ and communities’ needs.

Cultivating Native Student Success

Cultivating Native Student Success provides tribal colleges and universities the opportunity to examine their current enrollment management approaches and design long-term strategies that include holistic, place-based, and collaborative student supports to promote transformative and systemic change that impacts Native student success.

2025 Cultivating Native Student Success Convening

The American Indian College Fund and AIHEC are excited to host an opportunity to learn, network, and advance TCU Native Student Success.

Native higher education experts, organization partners, and TCU staff will come together to engage in discussions, workshops and breakout sessions about the Native student journey, strategic enrollment management, data storytelling, and the constantly evolving landscape of higher education.

TCU Programs

Our Programs, in partnership with TCUs, strengthen degree programs, support faculty and staff, prioritize students, and engage tribal nation communities across several program areas of targeted impact: Native Arts, Environmental Stewardship, Computer Science, Indigenous Early Childhood Education, Native Teacher Education, Adult Education, Women’s Leadership, Native Student Veterans, and more.

Programs TCU Capacity Support and Impact
2023-2024 Data

$12.9+
MILLION

In Scholarships Awarded

4960+

Recipient Students

34

Recipient TCUs

Tribal Colleges and Universities

Tribal colleges and universities provide dynamic higher education opportunities, most on or near reservation lands. Known for their remarkable programs, culturally-relevant curricula, and familial student care – tribal colleges allow students to further their careers, attain an advanced degree, or better support their communities.

(DRUM) Circles Project

TCU Developing Research in Undergraduate Mathematics

WestEd and the American Indian College Fund have partnered to create greater math success for Native students studying at tribal colleges.

Institutions News

Read blog updates from our institutions teams

Gardening Event Embraces Restorative Teachings

Gardening Event Embraces Restorative Teachings

Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute’s (SIPI) Restorative Teachings team gathered for our annual “Community Planting Event.” Every April for the past couple of years SIPI’s preschool children have planted corn, melons, and chile peppers. This event involves children, families, and staff members of both SIPI and the Youth Development Incorporated (YDI) Head Start.

Northwest Indian College Restorative Teachings ECE Initiative, May 2016

Northwest Indian College Restorative Teachings ECE Initiative, May 2016

Spring is in full bloom here at the Northwest Indian College (NWIC) Early Leaning Center, and the College Fund’s Restorative Teachings Early Childhood Education (ECE) Initiative is beginning to take shape.  We are fortunate to live in a part of the country where the seasonal changes are so dramatic and each transition brings such a feeling of change to our surroundings.