Tribal College Scholarship Timeline
A Tribal College Transfer is a student who is earning an associate’s degree at a tribal college and plans on transferring to a four-year university to earn a bachelor’s degree.
The benefits of attending a tribal college before transferring is:
- Remain close to home and family.
- Tribal colleges’ cultural curriculum strengthens
identity. - Strong sense of community.
- Saving money on the first 2 years of school.
- Academic preparedness.
Year One
Fall
1st Semester
- Apply for Financial Aid (FAFSA)
- Meet with an Advisor and form a 2-yr associate degree course plan
- Research schools where your credits will transfer
- Set a goal graduation date
- Select a major
Spring
2nd Semester
- Apply for a minimum of two scholarships
- Meet with an Advisor to discuss transfer options after your tribal college graduation
- Research application deadlines for transfer schools and mark them in your calendar
- Apply for internships
Summer
- Take the ACT or SAT (if your transfer school requires new test scores for admission)
- Work in a summer internship
- Earn community service hours -looks great on scholarship applications and applications to competitive schools, e.g. Harvard
- Apply for internships
Year Two
Fall
3rd Semester
- Apply for FAFSA
- Create a financial plan for your transfer
- Choose 3 schools to apply to
- Are you on track? Review graduation goal & 2-yr course plan
- Work on transfer admissions essays. Required for competitive schools
Spring
4th Semester
- Complete transfer admissions applications
- Create a financial plan for your transfer
- Apply for a minimum of two scholarships
- Campus visits to your transfer college
- Final decision. Choose your college!
- Apply for internships or seek out community service opportunities
Summer
- Review and accept financial aid package
- Inform schools you won’t be attending
- Attend orientation
- Research resources available for challenges you may encounter
Additional Scholarships
There are thousands of scholarship opportunities in addition to the Full Circle and Tribal College & University (TCU) scholarship programs we offer. We advise all students to apply to as many as they are eligible for. Discover more scholarship opportunities available outside of the American Indian College Fund.
Related Pages
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Circle of Hope Special Edition Fall 2024
| Special Edition 2024 |
Circle of Hope
Dear Friends and Relatives,
As you read this, our country will be anticipating change – one way or another, we will be close to knowing who our next President of the United States will be. This election has dominated our conversations, our attention spans, and for many, our emotions.
As a result, I fear a critically important opportunity has been lost in these winds of change; specifically, the critical moment for Tribal Nations and Native people to advance national reconciliation and healing through the July release by the Department of Interior of the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative Final Report.
Generational Trauma is Real – and Important to Acknowledge
Generational Trauma
is Real – and Important
to Acknowledge
This landmark report concludes a three-year investigation resulting in the federal government accepting responsibility for helping to create a system of more than 400 schools across 37 states in which Native children experienced abuse and mistreatment for decades. The report also confirms the deaths of at least 973 children at these schools, and suggests the actual figure is far greater.
Interestingly, not only did the report’s release occur during a highly contentious election, but it also coincided with the 2024-25 Student Ambassador training at our offices in Denver, at which students developed and shared their individual stories. I connect these two things because this year’s Ambassadors, like many Native people, bonded strongly through their common story of living with and fighting the effects of generational trauma, which stems from the painful boarding school era.
I know some people are hesitant to name generational trauma, but it is real, and it touches far more Native people than not. The pain caused by ripping families apart and losing children forever is not a pain you forget or set aside. It lives with you every moment of every day and is present in every decision you make. It can cause some to turn to drugs and alcohol or it may cause debilitating depression, leaving you powerless to take care of yourself or your family. It may manifest as physical pain or as significant health problems.
I listened to every student’s story of family histories of addiction, sexual assault, poverty, homelessness, suicide, and physical and mental health challenges. Many people do not understand the strong and deep connection between the abused and traumatized relatives in boarding schools and the challenges Native people and Tribal Nations experience today. But the connection is there. And the stories did not always end well for our students’ ancestors, nor for their children, grandchildren, and beyond.
The common thread in the Ambassadors’ stories that touched me most deeply was how education saved their lives – not just changed their lives but saved their lives – and their educations are at the core of their conviction that generational trauma and the manifestations stop with this generation. Our young people see education as the path to healing, confidence, safety, security, determination, and reclaiming their voices.
Many of our students have children, and the passion with which they speak about creating an environment of love, safety, security, and opportunity for their children is inspiring. It gives me so much hope for our future as Native people. Using education as the path to a better life for themselves and their children means something real – it is visible and tangible, and, most importantly, attainable.
You are the reason education is attainable for so many – you are supporting students as they end generational trauma and create a new era of healing, security, and opportunity for their children, their grandchildren, and for generations beyond. What an incredible difference you are making.
While I am sad the release of the Boarding School final report was lost in the election fervor, I do hope you will make time to read it. It is a painful story that has lived on in my people and is sometimes hard to read and digest – but it is also the pathway to healing and reconciliation, which is something we can all embrace.
I am deeply grateful for the appointment of Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) as Secretary of the Department of the Interior and for her commitment to providing closure to this very painful part of our shared history. I remain optimistic this closure will accelerate the healing we long for and need to move forward as healthy, thriving Nations.
Wopila, thank you.
You won’t want to miss our annual celebrations of Native culture at EATSS!
These special evenings delight the senses with incredible food, amazing performances, and brilliant art. All proceeds benefit our Native scholars!
If you are able to travel, be sure to join us for an EATSS experience bigger and more exciting than ever before – we promise to surround you in Native culture: traditional, modern, and everything in between!
EATSS TWIN CITIES
November 12, 2024
5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Historic Guthrie Theatre
Featuring musical guest Rufus Wainwright
Guest chefs:
– Chef Anthony Bauer (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa) a serial restauranteur and owner of Traditional Fire Custom Cuisine
– Chef Bradley Dry (Cherokee) has cooked for some of the nation’s largest Powwows and the crew of Reservation Dogs.
EATSS DENVER
November 23, 2024
5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Ellie Caulkins Opera House
Featuring musical guest Nathaniel Rateliff
Guest chefs:
– Chef Paul Natrall (Squamish Nation) the award-winning chef behind Vancouver’s first Indigenous food truck, Mr. Bannock.
– Chef Ben Jacobs (Osage Nation) a nationally renowned chef and co-founder of Tocabe, An American Indian Eatery, the country’s largest Native American restaurant chain.
Save the date: EATSS New York City! May 14, 2025
MAXIMIZE Your Philanthropic Goals
Let us help you tailor your charitable gift to your financial, tax, or estate planning objectives.
Visit our Legacy page to find the planned giving opportunity that best fits you.
Thank you for continuing to give dedicated students the resources to pursue their educational goals and dreams. Your generosity creates a lasting impact!
The Promise
of Tomorrow
Promise had dreams for a better future – but they began with the bare minimum. To escape abuse. To have a safe place to live. To have food on the table.
Like too many Native children, she found it hard to tend that flicker of hope, surrounded by a kind of generational trauma that felt like fate.
Her grandmother had survived boarding school but lost her identity, her language, and her way. Hardship followed them into the next generation, caught up in the same familiar patterns of addiction, violence, and poverty.
Teachers suggested to Promise she set her sights only on high school graduation and finding stable work. But Promise persevered, determined to find another path. “Hope felt scary, but what felt more terrifying was the thought that this would be it for my life: random jobs, minimum wage, a life that seemed to have no value.”
She taught herself to read, and worked tirelessly to improve her 2.1 GPA, even while holding down shift work and caring for the little ones at home. Without support from home or school, Promise applied to her tribe’s community college, Sinte Gleska University, and was accepted.
“I took this chance on myself because I want the world to see what I see when I look in the mirror. I do this for the little Promise who was silenced – she gets to be as loud as possible now.” Seeing a way out, she applied herself to school single mindedly. She quickly found herself on the Dean’s list and even in leadership roles for Native youth!
Today, the bare minimum is no longer her dream. It’s her reality: Promise will be the first person in her family to avoid jail, keep her children out of foster care, and graduate high school. But she is her ancestors’ wildest dreams.
“I get to heal the hundreds of years’ worth of generational trauma. I pave the ways for all my relatives, my future is bright like the stars at night on the Ihawnktowan lands where my feet were molded in the grass. Success is in my future; in the past I thought it could never be in my grip. Now, it’s in abundance overfilled in my hands.”
This year, Promise will complete her bachelor’s degree in Elementary and Special Education before moving on to pursue a graduate degree in Education Administration. She plans to give back to her tribal community by bringing culturally sensitive educational support to her reservation, ensuring every child can have a glimpse of their full potential from the earliest age.
When Native students are able to overcome it is inspiring – but is hard fought. People they love and trust may dampen their dreams, knowing no other path. What you do is invaluable to students. You believe in them against all odds, you speak encouragement into their lives, and you offer real help. It is because of your support that more American Indians than ever are on the path to a degree. And, like Promise, so many plan to pay it forward into the next seven generations and beyond.
Promise
(Yankton Sioux, Santee Sioux)
Sinte Gleska University
Special Education, Early Elementary
“Having the support that I have now is what gives me hope.
You are filling my cup so I can fill others. You actually believe I can do it – so I am going to do it!”
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American Indian College Fund Statement on President Biden’s Apology on Federal Boarding School Policy
American Indian boarding school students. U.S. Library of Congress.
Cheryl Crazy Bull, President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund
American Indian College Fund Statement on President Biden’s Apology on Federal Boarding School Policy
Denver, Colo.— October 25, 2024 — President Biden issued a formal apology October 25 in Arizona for the U.S. government’s role in forcing more than 60,000 American Indian and Alaska Native children into Indian boarding schools for a 150-year period that resulted in the deaths of nearly 1,000 students. This federal policy stripped Native American children of their language and culture to force their assimilation into White society.
Speaking to the apology, Cheryl Crazy Bull, President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund, said, “The experiences of Native people with boarding schools touches nearly every Native American alive today.
The federal government policy had a goal of total assimilation of Native people. This assimilation was to be achieved by separating children from families, banning the use of Native languages, and forcing children and young people to adopt Western practices, including insisting they give up their own spiritual ways to become Christians. During this period across several generations, many children were physically abused, sexually assaulted, malnourished, and mistreated. The Interior Department urged the U.S. government this summer to formally apologize for the enduring trauma inflicted on Native Americans. The trauma of those experiences reverberates across Indian Country today.
Yet this dark period in American history is largely unknown to non-Natives. I hope President Biden’s apology not only raises awareness of the true Native history in our country but is a step towards national reconciliation and healing.
We join Tribes, Native organizations, and our Native relatives and allies in the call for reparative actions. Today we call for a significant investment by the federal government and philanthropy in restorative and healing approaches and institutions to repair the harm done by the boarding school era. The Native people who we support, from our youngest children to our college students, deserve that investment. The tribal college and university movement that emerged over 50 years ago to support place-based, Native-led, and tribally controlled education deserves that investment.
We also thank Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna tribe of New Mexico, whose grandparents and great-grandfather were taken from their homes and sent to boarding schools. Under her leadership, the boarding school investigation launched three years ago, and was the first time the U.S. government scrutinized the schools and listened to the stories of boarding school survivors and their descendants. Secretary Haaland’s leadership was vital to the formal apology American Indian and Alaska Native people received today.”
About the American Indian College Fund — The American Indian College Fund has been the nation’s largest charity supporting Native higher education for 35 years. The College Fund believes “Education is the answer” and provided $20,579 million in scholarships and other direct student support for access to a higher education that is steeped in Native culture and values to American Indian students in 2023-24. Since its founding in 1989 the College Fund has provided more than $349 million in scholarships, programs, community, and tribal college support. The College Fund also supports a variety of programs at the nation’s 34 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. It earned a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, a Gold Seal of Transparency from Guidestar, and the “Best in America Seal of Excellence” from the Independent Charities of America. The College Fund was also named as one of the nation’s top 100 charities 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.
Save the Date: American Indian College Fund’s Denver EATSS Event Returns November 23, 2024
Save the Date: American Indian College Fund’s Denver EATSS Event Returns November 23, 2024
Award-Winning Chefs, Renowned Artists, and World-Class Musician Nathaniel Rateliff to Headline
Denver, Colo., October 21, 2024– The American Indian College Fund is excited to announce the return of its Denver EATSS event on Saturday, November 23, 2024, at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House in downtown Denver. This unforgettable evening promises a fully immersive experience of Indigenous cuisine, art, and music, bringing together the traditions and diversity of Native culture in celebration of the College Fund’s mission to support Native scholars.
The evening begins with the EATSS event from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., featuring culinary masterpieces from some of the country’s most celebrated Indigenous chefs, including Chef Paul Natrall and Chef Bradley Dry, among others. The celebration extends beyond food, showcasing original artworks from up-and-coming American Indian artists, providing a unique glimpse into Native creativity and tradition. The Ellie Caulkins Opera House, known for its lyric style and acoustic excellence, and adorned with public art pieces like those of Dale Chihuly, offers a grand setting for this culturally rich gathering. Its long-standing history as a hub for the arts in Denver makes it a fitting venue to honor and celebrate Indigenous heritage.
The night will culminate with an exclusive, acoustic performance from Denver local Nathaniel Rateliffe, who will stop at EATSS just for this event on his international tour. His performance starts at 8 p.m.
Event Details: Date: Saturday, November 23, 2024 Time: 5:30 p.m.–9:30 p.m. MT Location: Ellie Caulkins Opera House, 1385 Curtis St., Denver, Colo. 80204
This one-night-only event aims to bring people together to experience the vibrant traditions of Indigenous culture, expressed through food, art, and music. EATSS offers a unique opportunity to support the College Fund’s work in transforming the lives of Native students through higher education.
Tickets and More Information: Tickets and sponsorship opportunities are available now! Proceeds directly benefit the American Indian College Fund’s mission to provide scholarships to American Indian and Alaska Native students, fostering the next generation of Indigenous leaders. Visit https://standwith.collegefund.org/denver-eatss/ to purchase tickets or to learn more about sponsorship benefits.
Press Contacts:
For inquiries about EATSS and chef or artist interviews, please contact:
Zac Hunter
Public Relations Manager,
Vladimir Jones
757-304-2279
zhunter@vladimirjones.com
For inquiries about the American Indian College Fund, please contact:
Dina Horwedel
Senior Director of Public Education,
American Indian College Fund
303-430-5350
dhorwedel@collegefund.org
About the American Indian College Fund — The American Indian College Fund has been the nation’s largest charity supporting Native higher education for 35 years. The College Fund believes “Education is the answer” and provided $20,579 million in scholarships and other direct student support for access to a higher education that is steeped in Native culture and values to American Indian students in 2023-24. Since its founding in 1989 the College Fund has provided more than $349 million in scholarships, programs, community, and tribal college support. The College Fund also supports a variety of programs at the nation’s 34 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. It earned a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, a Gold Seal of Transparency from Guidestar, and the “Best in America Seal of Excellence” from the Independent Charities of America. The College Fund was also named as one of the nation’s top 100 charities 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.
