Tailoring Mainstream Higher Education Practices to Indigenous Values

In my short time at Student-Ready Strategies, I have had the privilege of working with myriad of Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) through a collaborative partnership with the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC). One important question continues to surface throughout this work from TCU professionals: Why is the general assumption that TCUs should tailor their approaches to align with mainstream higher education practices?

This question underscored a recent virtual Community of Practice session with our TCU partners where I shared lessons that the Student-Ready Strategies team has learned from working with TCUs. The conversation that ensued surfaced how Indigenous culture and values at TCUs shape their approach to serving students. It also highlighted the wealth of unique expertise and professional knowledge at these institutions. Because TCUs were made to support tribal communities, mainstream higher education sometimes forgets that their approaches to student-centered success are generalizable across all colleges and universities. 

Every TCU is different. However, I have seen certain commonalities across them over the time I have had the privilege of working with them. This is what I have observed about TCUs that I encourage more mainstream institutions to appreciate and emulate:

• Best practices from higher education research are infused and utilized.  But, when the higher education jargon doesn’t connect with the campus or community, they do what they need to do to make it their own.

• Empathy guides the work. Faculty, staff, and administrators embed empathy into their personal practice, regardless of circumstances. 

• Staff are student-centered across functional areas. Staff understand that students’ lives do not exist in a vacuum. They acknowledge and work to address external factors that impact students’ academic success. 

• Culture shapes strategy. The institutional values, beliefs, and mission inform all initiatives, policies, and procedures. 

• Women are centered as leaders. The important role of wisdom bearer and thought provider that women hold in Indigenous communities is honored and displayed in decision making, strategic planning, and goal setting. 

• Professionals use resources efficiently and creatively. Resources are broadly defined beyond the scope of finances and are proficiently used to advance student-centered objectives. 

• Staff value relational accountability. Employees have the holistic view that their responsibilities and practices are directly connected to their communities, relationships, and nature. They understand that genuine relationship building requires mutual respect, active listening, and the willingness to reciprocate. 

• Policies are infused with community initiatives. Faculty, administrators, and staff know that caring for and including the community in campus policies is essential for long-lasting student engagement and success. They ensure that the community (family, friends, tribal members, etc.) is involved in the institution’s core to align with the values and responsibilities of their students.

A Call to Action for the Field

Rather than focusing on how to shoehorn mainstream best practices into the TCU experience, there is a largely overlooked opportunity for mainstream higher education professionals to learn from TCUs. Mainstream higher education professionals should reach out to their TCU colleagues more often, seek out publications written by TCU practitioners, and attend conference presentations facilitated by TCU practitioners.  

I cannot convey the utmost respect, appreciation, and gratitude that I have to the faculty, staff, and administrators at TCUs who welcomed me into a collegial environment that became a relationship filled with multiway knowledge exchanges.  The people who have the honor of working with these institutions need to take the time to both listen and learn before forming proposed solutions to problems. As Student-Ready Strategies continues this important work with TCUs, my ears will be wide open, my brain will be ready to learn more, and my heart will lead with empathy.