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Wakiya Foundation Works to Expand Pathways to Good Jobs for Rural Native Learners

Grant Partner Profile: Wakiya Foundation

October 4, 2024 3-minute read
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What are Tribal Colleges and Universities?

Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) are public institutions of higher education, intended to provide Native learners an affordable opportunity to earn a certificate or degree close to their home, family, and tribe. To qualify as an accredited TCU, institutions must be tribally chartered, their boards must be comprised of a majority of Native Americans, and their student body must be comprised of a majority (51%) of Native Americans. 

All 35 TCUs in the U.S. offer certificate programs and associates degrees, while 19 offer bachelor’s degrees and seven offer master’s degree programs. Additionally, the curriculum at TCUs is grounded in the culture, traditions, spirituality, and language of the chartering tribe, making tribal identity core to the mission of every TCU.

Visit the American Indian College Fund’s Tribal Colleges and Universities page to find a TCU near you and learn more.

About the Wakiya Foundation

The Wakiya Foundation supports Native Americans in their educational pursuits at any level, from early childhood education through college and beyond. They work to broaden and strengthen opportunities for Native learners by providing resources and tools that help remove barriers to educational success.

Wakiya Foundation founder Chris Ironroad is an enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and has decades of experience representing tribal governments and organizations across the country in legal and policy matters. Project advisors at the Wakiya Foundation are also enrolled members of tribal communities and understand the importance of integrating culture into postsecondary education success for Native learners.

About ‘Connected Pathways for Tribal Colleges and Universities’

In October 2022, the Wakiya Foundation received a three-year grant from Ascendium to expand and strengthen opportunities for Native adult learners through partnerships with tribal colleges and universities (TCUs). With the grant, the Wakiya Foundation is working with three TCUs in Montana and Western Governors University to launch new bachelor’s degree programs based on an analysis of regional labor market data.

By conducting labor market analysis, the Wakiya Foundation and its partners can see where gaps exist in the workforce and create program offerings that aim to fill those labor market needs. Credentials and degrees created from this new model are aligned to jobs that are in-demand regionally. Additionally, a regional focus helps the TCUs share resources and respond more efficiently to the region’s economic needs. Utilizing an online education provider also minimizes and removes many barriers for Native learners in accessing and obtaining high-quality postsecondary education.

Because no two TCUs are alike, it’s important that enhancements be carefully designed and planned to target the unique needs of learners and their communities while also weaving their unique tribal cultures throughout the learner experience. However, many insights garnered from this project can serve as models for TCUs and other rural institutions as they aim to fill gaps in opportunities that connect learners from low-income backgrounds to well-paying jobs.

Our Commitment

Ascendium is committed to learning about promising innovations, reforms, and solutions that connect rural Native American and Alaska Native learners from low-income backgrounds to postsecondary education and workforce training pathways that lead to good jobs. As part of this commitment, we support partnerships that center the cultural perspectives of rural Native learners and address the systemic barriers they face. Our investment in the Wakiya Foundation will help us and others learn about the critical role TCUs have in educating Indigenous learners and better understand how institutions can fill gaps in opportunities that connect these learners to online postsecondary programs that lead to well-paying or remote jobs.

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