Factors associated with the personal assessment of college among American Indian students at a rural university

Abstract


 
 
 
 This study examines the relationship between four independent variables (gender, age, reservation background, and cultural traditionalism) with three dependent variables (assessment of college, transition to college, and impact of college on an appreciation of Native heritage) among a sample of American Indian students attending a small, rural university. Findings include no significant relationships between any of the independent variables and the assessment of college. However, the transition to college is associated with age, reservation background, and cultural traditionalism while the impact of college on an appreciation of Native heritage is related to cultural traditionalism.
 
 
 
 

Native Americans in Higher Education: An Ecological Systems Perspective

“…American students has examined how possessing cultural values and traditions affects studentslimiting the scope of inquiry to the individual and promoting a deficit approach. As such, finding that Native American students who possess cultural values and traditions have trouble transitioning to college may suggest that they are not as likely to succeed, situating the problem within the individual (Huffman, 2008). This attributes the likelihood of succeeding or not succeeding in college to whether or not students' possess cultural values and traditions.…”

Knowing Who You Are (Becoming): Effects of a university-based elder-led cultural identity program on Alaska Native students’ identity development, cultural strengths, sense of community, and behavioral health.

“…AN young people who feel strong in their identities largely attribute this to their grandparents and other Elders in their community (Buckingham & Hutchinson, 2022). There have been movements to Indigenize universities sitting on traditional lands and serving AN students via infusing traditional Indigenous wisdom, often through Elder-led programming (Battiste, 2002;Brayboy et al, 2015;Fish & Syed, 2018;Huffman, 2001;Reyes & Shotton, 2018;Tachine et al, 2017;White Shield, 2004). For example, universities have Elder-in-Residence programs that house AN Elders in residence halls.…”

“…Many students attribute leaving to separation from families and communities (Office of Student Affairs, 2016). In addition to promoting emotional/behavioral health, cultural identity plays a pivotal role in how students thrive and persist in higher education (e.g., DeCou et al, 2013;Huffman, 2001;Larimore & McClellan, 2005;McKay et al, 2013;Wexler & Burke, 2011).…”

Measuring Gradations of Culture-Specific Support for Native American College Students: A Latent Class Analysis Approach

“…Culturally Invalid Frameworks of (Un)Success RESEARCHERS HAVE DEMONSTRATED that Native American college students who used their cultural identity as a strength were academically successful (Huffman, 2010(Huffman, , 2011Marroquín, 2020;Okagaki, Helling & Bingham, 2009). In other words, students who have a strong sense of their cultural identity were less likely to assimilate and were more culturally resilient.…”

“…Transculturation is a distinct theory and socialization process, which evolved to explain the educational and cultural experiences specifically for Native Americans. The main tenants of transculturation are predicated on social isolation (Huffman, 2011) and perceptions of support for Native students once they are on campus (Marroquín, 2020). Huffman (2001) proposed that transculturated students are able to break out of social isolation and are able to navigate within their campus.…”