The cornerstone on Troth Yeddha': stories of Alaska Native college students

Abstract

Since the late 19th century, higher education has played three different roles in the Alaska Native rights movement: nurturing Native political leaders towards the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (1891-1971), teaching Alaska Native peoples how to manage their land and resources (1971-1990), and developing Native academic leadership from within universities (1991-2013). The previous studies revealed Alaskan universities' inadequate and discriminatory responsesto Alaska Native peoples' educational needs/wants after the 1960s, and further identified a wide range of factors affecting Alaska Native college students' academic achievement and wellbeing. The historical examination and the literature review collectively delineate Alaska Native peoples' experiences with universities in the past. In order to understand the status quo of Alaska Native higher education, three Alaska Native college students were interviewed about their college experiences and thoughts on higher education during the spring of 2019. All three students mentioned the benefit of having an Indigenous community on campus, and giving back as a reason to pursue postsecondary education. Each student also had a unique perspective that the other students did not share, which included the importance of Alaska Native language courses for cultural well-being, place identity crisis caused by the relocation from a home village to an urban campus, and the prejudice against the services Alaska Native college students receive. These findings can be used as a starting point for a discussion on how to improve higher education for future generations of Alaska Native peoples. As the very persons experiencing the long-standing effect of colonization, Alaska Native college students have a strong power to transform higher education. Hearing their stories is the key to achieving multicultural higher education and creating an equitable society in Alaska.