American Indian College Fund Announces First Post-Baccalaureate Fellow, Taylor Lucero
New Research and Evaluation Fellowship Offers Insight into College Fund and Native Communities Served
Taylor Lucero graduated from the University of Denver with a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminology and is the American Indian College Fund’s first Post-Baccalaureate Fellow.
November 10, 2022, Denver, Colo.– In keeping with its mission to positively impact the lives of American Indians by supporting their higher education and career goals and to support Native-led research, the American Indian College Fund launched a post-baccalaureate fellowship program within its Research and Evaluation Department to explore the impact of its programming, research, and work enhancing the capacities of tribal colleges and universities (TCUs). Taylor Lucero (Laguna Pueblo) was selected to serve as the College Fund’s first Post-Baccalaureate Fellow in the program.
Lucero graduated from the University of Denver (DU) with a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminology. During her studies, Lucero presented qualitative and quantitative data on topics including the Native student experience in predominantly white institutions, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives, the harmful implications of Native-themed mascots, and advocated for Native and Indigenous students at DU.
The two-year fellowship is a paid, full-time position that is awarded to a recent college graduate who will work to contribute to the College Fund’s efforts to serve American Indian and Alaska Native students (AIAN).
The program goal, in addition to gathering research on the College Fund’s impact, is to provide new research professionals with a wide range of professional skills in research, communication, evaluation, group facilitation, teamwork, project management, writing, and leadership. The fellow will also receive broad exposure to the College Fund’s current work, including education research and evaluation, AIAN college student experiences, and the TCU context.
About the American Indian College Fund—The American Indian College Fund has been the nation’s largest charity supporting Native higher education for 33 years. The College Fund believes “Education is the answer” and provided $14.45 million in scholarships and other direct student support to American Indian students in 2021-22. Since its founding in 1989 the College Fund has provided more than $284 million in scholarships, program, community, and tribal college support. The College Fund also supports a variety of academic and support programs at the nation’s 35 accredited tribal colleges and universities, which are located on or near Indian reservations, ensuring students have the tools to graduate and succeed in their careers. The College Fund consistently receives top ratings from independent charity evaluators and is one of the nation’s top 100 charities named to the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance. For more information about the American Indian College Fund, please visit www.collegefund.org.
Journalists—The American Indian College Fund does not use the acronym AICF. On second reference, please use the College Fund.
Photo: Taylor Lucero graduated from the University of Denver with a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminology and is the American Indian College Fund’s first Post-Baccalaureate Fellow.
