Study: Institutions, Over Peers and Tribes, Bolster Indigenous Student Belonging

"A new study from the American Indian College Fund and National Native Scholarship Providers found that Indigenous students report a stronger sense of belonging on campus when their college provides "perceptions of a sense of acceptance, inclusion and identity." They call this "institutional support," and it's the primary predictor of belonging, trailed by peer support, campus climate and tribal support, the study showed."

"Unsurprisingly, tribal colleges foster a greater sense of institutional belonging among Indigenous students than other institution types. At nontribal institutions, Indigenous students must create belonging via "informal networks and cultural resilience amid institutional neglect or performative inclusion." Indigenous students at nontribal campuses also report experiencing more microaggressions and cultural isolation. Students at institutions with larger populations of Indigenous students report a 14 percent higher sense of belonging than those at schools with fewer Native peers."

"When looking at Indigenous student belonging at the state level, students attending college in states with larger tribal populations actually report a lower sense of belonging and say they feel less supported than students in states with smaller tribal populations, "suggesting that population size alone does not equate to meaningful support," the study noted. Students in states with a tribal college or university reported an 18 percent lower sense of belonging than students in states without a"

More than 560 Indigenous students enrolled at 184 institutions across tribal colleges and universities, predominantly white institutions, Hispanic-serving institutions, and other minority-serving institutions were surveyed between March and April 2024. Perceptions of acceptance, inclusion, and identity—termed institutional support—most strongly predict students' sense of belonging, followed by peer support, campus climate, and tribal support. Tribal colleges produce higher institutional belonging, while Indigenous students at nontribal campuses often rely on informal networks and cultural resilience amid institutional neglect or performative inclusion, and report more microaggressions and cultural isolation. Campuses with larger Indigenous populations show a 14 percent higher belonging, while states with larger tribal populations report lower belonging; presence of a tribal college correlated with an 18 percent lower sense of belonging.

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