For the seven generations: equity in United States higher education policy through an indigenous lens

The following dissertation contains three articles that aim to advance equity in higher education policy in the United States through an Indigenous lens. The body of research on using higher education policy to advance student achievement in the United States is vast, and more recently a focus on using policy to advance equity has come to the fore. The field largely relies on quantitative methodologies that systematically exclude Indigenous students from analyses. The studies herein employ a variety of methodologies to bring the educational needs and desires of Indigenous students and communities into the spotlight. These studies analyze how state and federal governments can better serve the Indigenous peoples of these lands in our nation’s higher education system.

The first study conceptualizes Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) as rural serving institutions while challenging the use of the term education desert to describe geographic areas with limited access to postsecondary education. The second study employs quantitative methods to understand the relationship between state appropriations to TCUs and student outcomes at those institutions. The final study uses critical discourse analysis to examine how two states with relatively high rural and Indigenous populations designed and implemented what has come to be known as an equity initiative despite their politically contentious contexts.

Together, these studies center Indigenous students, tribal communities, and TCUs in ways not often seen in the education policy discourse. They also highlight continued shortcomings of the United States higher education system as it pertains to Indigenous students and tribal communities.