Naabaahii Ółta’í: Native Student Veterans Peer-to-Peer Program
2024 – 2025
About The Program
The American Indian College Fund’s Naabaahii Ółta’í: Native Student Veterans Peer-to-Peer Program stemmed from a veteran resource survey conducted by the College Fund in 2019. Learnings and conversations with partners about supports Native student veterans need continued over the following five years as the $50,000 grant program was developed and eventually funded in 2023 by the May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust. The program supports the empowerment and success of Native student veterans at TCUs through fellowship opportunities. The pilot cohort in 2024 supported one 10-month fellowship. The 2024-2025 full cohort supports three eight-month fellowships. The peer-to-peer mentorship program aims to form relationships between veterans through their shared experiences. Through this program, Native student veterans will discover how to best serve in their roles as Native veterans at their TCU and in their communities.
The program works in partnership with awarded TCU grantees and local and national veteran support organizations, meeting the needs of Native student veterans through a fellowship stipend, community-based project, networking opportunities, and educational and career advancement programming. Native student veterans work on community-based projects that support the overall health and wellness for their TCU and the communities they serve.
Naabaahii Ółta’í is Diné (Navajo) meaning student warrior.
Program Gallery
Grantees
2024 Pilot
Diné College
2024-2025 Cohort
Bay Mills Community College
Haskell Indian Nations University
Oglala Lakota College
Related Blogs
Reflecting on the Naabaahii Ółta’í: Native Student Veterans Peer-to-Peer Program Convening
Written by Ryan Crawford, Oglala Lakota College, 2024-2025 Native Student Veteran Fellow As I reflect on my experience attending the Naabaahii Ółta'í: Native Student Veterans Peer-to-Peer Program Convening in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on February 25-26, 2025, I am filled with...
Veteran Student Uses Fellowship to Lead Mental Health Awareness Efforts
"Leadership is the capacity to translate a vision into reality" - Warren Bennis By Tori Primeaux On October 30, 2023, I heard about an opportunity through the American Indian College Fund for a fellowship for Native students who are veterans to grow as leaders as they...
Native Student Veteran Works to Prevent Diabetes in Her Community
By Cynthia Jean Jones Yaateeh. I am of the Salt Clan and born for Two Who Came to the Water Clan, my maternal clan are of the Two Who Came to the Water Clan, and my Paternal Clan are the Chiricahua Apache Clan. I come from a beautiful place called Adaahozhoni in...
May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust Partners with American Indian College Fund to Support Native Student Veterans
The American Indian College Fund (College Fund) has received a $50,000 grant from the May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust to implement a six-month fellowship focused on empowering Native student veterans to success. The Naabaahii Ółta’í (Student Warrior): Native Student Veterans Peer-to-Peer Program is a mentorship opportunity that builds relationships between veterans based upon their shared experiences.
