Native Students Stepping Forward:
Dollar General Adult Education Program
2014 – Ongoing
About The Program
The American Indian College Fund’s Native Students Stepping Forward: Dollar General Adult Education Program, previously known as the Dollar General American Indian and Alaska Native Literacy and Adult Education Program, addresses a critical gap in the education pathway, empowering underserved Native people to gain the foundational literacy skills needed to prepare for and obtain high school equivalency (HSE) credentials and pursue post-secondary education and meaningful career pathways.
Like the Dollar General Literacy Foundation (DGLF), the program’s primary funder, supporting it at up to $300,000 annually, Native Students Stepping Forward is committed to helping individuals of all ages receive the educational foundation they need to succeed in post-secondary education opportunities or the workforce. Through tribal college and university (TCU)-implemented programming, this work seeks to strategically expand services and resources to achieve measurable outcomes in ABE progression and HSE program enrollment, retention, and completion. In a continuous effort to value the whole student, the program aims to assess and address students’ needs to succeed, encourages culturally relevant programming elements, promotes visibility of HSE students at TCUs, and supports college and career readiness programming components. TCU grantee partners also regularly engage across the cohort in a Community of Practice (CoP) to share best practices and challenges, strengthen programming, and examine holistic impact on students and communities.
High School Equivalency Visibility Project
The American Indian College Fund engaged three TCU high school equivalency (HSE) partners for the HSE Visibility Project, featuring the stories of HSE students and graduates in a social media campaign throughout winter and spring of 2024.
2022 High School Equivalency Program Convening
Grantees
Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University
Northwest Indian College
Oglala Lakota College
Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College
Salish Kootenai College
Sinte Gleska University
Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute
Tohono O'odham Community College
Related Blogs
Always Something to Learn – Oglala Lakota College GED Tutor Feature
Oglala Lakota College GED tutors find themselves learning and celebrating milestones along with their students.
SGU Connects Arts and Culture to GED Classroom
Sinte Gleska University’s high school equivalency students become grounded in their cultural identities as they lead community engagement efforts through Native Arts workshops.
Giving Back to Native Youth
Jeri’s first step to achieving her dream of serving and supporting Native youth is completing her high school equivalency degree at Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University.
Tohono O’odham Community College’s Pre-College Program Graduates Three GED Students in 2022 and Launches Pre-College GED FAST TRACK Option in 2023
Tohono O’odham Community College continues to make strides in pre-college pathway options for Native students, setting them up for success in their college and career journeys.
