Connors State College (OK) $799,930.00 

Connors State College (CSC or Connors), and Easter Oklahoma State College (EOSC or

Eastern) are two public community colleges serving a southeastern region of Oklahoma that

overlaps two large tribal lands – Cherokee and Choctaw, Creek and Muskogee. Together the

institutions serve more than 3,000 students, of which 37% are Native American and 61% are

low-income. The CSC and EOSC combined service area encompasses 19 counties, 28% of all

service area residents are Native American. Disadvantaged characteristics are accentuated among

this population with 21.9% living in poverty compared to 18.1% of all Native Americans in

Oklahoma and 21.4% across the United States.

Connor and Eastern share challenges associated with student success resulting in fall-to-fall 

persistence rates of less than 50% and three-year graduation rates averaging 30%. In recent

years, both Colleges have witnessed an increasing level of disconnectedness among their

students, with far too many failing to engage with faculty and staff, postponing decisions on

course of study or career plans, and many grappling with socio-emotional challenges. The

institutions conducted a comprehensive analysis of institutional weaknesses that are contributing

(at most) or failing to alleviate (at best) this negative trend. The results of this analysis lead us to

the development of this cooperative project as a means to address our ever-growing challenges.

CSC and EOSC submit this Native American Serving Non-Tribal Institution (NASNTI)

cooperative grant application as a means to provide our students with the guidance and support

they so desperately need. We propose to implement a Guided Pathways framework developed by

Community College Research Center (CCRC) and the American Association of Community

Colleges (AACC) that is focused on improving students’ abilities to 1) Connect, 2) Enter, 3)

Progress, and 4) Succeed. Our project, titled A Collaborative Equity-Mindedness Approach to

Guided Pathways to Success, includes the following initiatives:

➢ Onboarding to Degree Completion: Over the course of five years, CSC and EOSC will

develop a Guided Pathways Center and Career Services Center at each institution and

implement a Guided Pathways Coaching process to guide students from first enrollment,

through selection of a course of study, and persistence to degree completion. To

accomplish this, partner institutions will develop a set of Onboarding activities for first
time students (self-assessment tools, guided pathways resource toolkit, and individualized

guided pathways plans). Industry professionals will collaborate with CSC and EOSC to

engage students in focused career exploration within the fields of STEM, Agriculture

Sciences, Health/Social Sciences, and Business/Technical Programs.

➢ Strengthening the Pathways: CSC and EOSC will develop and implement

comprehensive Career Services and Mental Health Interventions for students and provide

professional development for faculty and staff focused on creating a Culturally

Competent Trauma-Informed teaching and learning environment.

The proposed project responds to both 2023 Competitive Preference Priorities, the entire

focus of this project is a direct correlation to the focus of the stated priorities.

Federal funding request: $3,999,677 over five years.
Carl Albert State College (OK) $799,994.00 

Carl Albert State College (CASC) and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College (NEO)— 

both two-year, public, open-door Native American-Serving Nontribal Institutions—propose a

cooperative Title III NASNTI project.

Lead institution CASC is located in Poteau, OK (pop. 8,866), with a branch campus in 

Sallisaw, OK (pop. 8,476). The two-county, 2,223 square mile service area (pop. 91,686, 24.5%

Native American) is near the heart of the Cherokee and Choctaw Nations; Native Americans

comprised 38% of Fall 2021 enrollment. CASC offers degrees in 28 programs.

Partner institution NEO is located in Miami, OK (pop. 13,176), in the northeastern corner

of state. NEO’s 2,040 square-mile, three-county service area (pop. 88,298, 30% Native

American), is home to ten tribal jurisdictions. In Fall 2021, Native Americans represented 29%

of enrollment. NEO offers degrees and certificates in 38 transfer and occupational programs.

In response to the COVID pandemic, partner institutions expanded online, hybrid, and

Zoom videoconferencing-enabled instruction. Since 2020, the number of virtual course sections

has increased by 52% at CASC and by 78% at NEO. Students continue to embrace virtual

offerings, and we are proud of our responses to their need for flexible postsecondary options.

However, both colleges’ virtual campus students struggle to persist in and complete

postsecondary degrees. Of first-time, full-time students enrolled at CASC in Fall 2021, 43%

were retained to Fall 2022. NEO’s retention rate for the same period was 57%. Completion rates

are also low. Of first-time, full-time student enrolling at CASC in 2018, 33% had graduated three

years later; three year graduation for first-time, full-time students enrolling at NEO in 2019 was

just 22%. Contributing to these rates are partner institutions’ inadequate support systems for the

predominantly “new majority” students enrolling in virtual campus courses. These students

grapple with host of factors—such as economic insecurity; extracurricular commitments, and

physical/mental health challenges—that undermine success, retention, and completion.

Gaps and weaknesses impacting both partners’ virtual campus support include the inability

to invest in professional development in best practices for virtual support. Nor has either partner

had the capacity to provide adequate faculty/staff training in use of its Learning Management

System (LMS), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and, for NEO, its Customer Resource
Management (CRM) system to drive data-informed support/instruction. Insufficient professional

development facilities at each college further impede training in data-informed practices.

To support its Native American and low income students, CASC and NEO propose

Supporting the New Majority, a project with two initiatives to strengthen institutional capacity

to provide data-driven and culturally-responsive support for virtual campus students:

Initiative 1 – Strengthen Faculty and Staff Capacity to use Data to Support Virtual Campus

Student Success: The partners will work together to strengthen faculty and staff capacity to use

LMS, ERP, and CRM data to support best practices for virtual campus instruction and support.

Initiative 2 – Strengthen Institutional Capacity to Support Virtual Campus Student Success:

Each partner will embed student support—a Support Team at CASC and Support Networks at

NEO—within high-demand, high-risk virtual courses. The partners will collaborate on shared

training for support staff in cultural responsiveness and best practices for virtual student support.

To support faculty/staff training and collaboration as well as virtual campus support pilots,

an Online Resource Center will be established and equipped at CASC and a Faculty and Staff

Resource Center will be established and equipped at NEO.

The proposed project addresses Competitive Preference Priorities for the 2023 NASNTI

competition. Five-year budget request: $3,999,313 (CASC $2,250,001, NEO $1,749,312). 
University of Science and Arts (OK) $380,847.00

USAO is a public, four-year liberal arts university located in south-central Oklahoma. USAO

currently holds the maximum 10-year accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission of the

North Central Association. USAO offers Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees. Dr.

John Feaver is the President of the university. Our fall 2022 FTE enrollment was 824.

Activity: The proposed activity, New Pathways to Success, has three components: establishing

financial literacy education, improving disability services, and establishing an experiential 

learning program. The financial literacy education component includes individualized financial

planning and coaching for cohorts of historically underserved students, a campus wide workshop

series to address timely and relevant financial planning skills for college students, a workshop

series which addresses culturally relevant financial literacy for Native American students, a peer

mentoring pilot program, and the integration of financial and economic literacy topics in existing

courses. The disability services component includes enhancement of current USAO policies and

procedures addressing the needs of students with disabilities, the development and pilot of 

selfadvocacy

training for incoming freshman, the development and pilot of a student support group

and a Student Advisory Board, and the development and implementation of faculty professional

development to increase knowledge and skills in meeting the academic needs of students with

disabilities. The experiential learning component includes the development of community

partnerships with local/regional employers, tribal governments, community organizations, and

others so that USAO student will have experiential learning opportunities in internships,

capstone projects, community-based study, and service learning. These opportunities will be

integrated in existing courses in collaboration with current faculty. In addition, this component

includes the development and pilot of a career opportunities fair and a career opportunities

workshop for students who are Native American or low-income and have disabilities.

Purpose: This project will improve USAO’s capacity to increase the retention, success, and

graduation of Native American and low-income students by establishing financial literacy

education, improving disability services, and establishing an experiential learning program. As

part of this project, faculty and staff will participate in professional development leading to
greater understanding and improved instructional methods for Native American and low-income

students, including those with disabilities. This project will increase USAO capacity to offer

high-quality student support services. This proposal addresses both Competitive Preference

Priorities for the competition.

Funds requested for the five-year project: $1,995,172

Contact: Dr John Feaver, President, University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma

1727 West Alabama Avenue, Chickasha, Oklahoma 73018

405-224-3140
Northeastern State University (OK) $599,866.00

Northeastern State University’s proposes will be housed on the main campus in Tahlequah, OK. The 

proposed project seeks to expand the reach of services to America Indian and low-income students, 

improve the

efficiency of the delivery of services, and expanding the Native language revitalization efforts of

the Cherokee and Indigenous Studies program.

The NASNTI project is essential to improving the institution's capacity to improve the

retention and graduation rates of American Indian students. It addresses the following

legislatively allowable activities: (2) Renovation and improvement in classroom, library, and

other instructional facilities; (3) support of faculty exchanges and development and faculty

fellowships; curriculum development and academic instruction; (6) funds and administrative

management; and (7) the joint use of facilities such as laboratories and libraries.

The proposed project addresses both Competitive Preference Priority 1 and 2, as well as

the Invitational Priority. The primary objectives focus on: the development of a cultural and life

skills lab on campus; expanding and improving delivery of services to students using campuswide

software; providing professional development for faculty and staff; and finally, expanding

Cherokee language courses and providing immersion-style language learning opportunities.

Ultimately, the goal of the project is to increase the retention and graduation rates of

American Indian and low-income students. This will be accomplished by fostering a sense of

community and belonging among American Indian students; addressing the financial constraints

of the institution by investing in software designed to improve services; improving students’

career readiness and ultimate career success; and supporting Cherokee language and culture

preservation efforts.
Northeastern State University (OK) $800,000.00

Northeastern State University and Tulsa Community College request funding for a

Cooperative NASNTI project to strengthen their Smart Choice Transfer Pathway for Native

American and low-income students. NSU and TCC are both located in northeastern Oklahoma

adjacent to the Cherokee and Seminole reservations. NSU serves a student population that is

35% Native American and 90% low-income and TCC serves a student population that is 7%

Native American. NSU and TCC established a formalized transfer degree program partnership

yet are experiencing a decline in students who are successfully transferring from TCC to NSU.

Additionally, despite a large population of Native Americans in the region (more than 150,000),

Native American college-going rates remain low.

Through this project, NSU and TCC will implement the following interventions to

improve Native American and low-income student enrollment, retention, graduation, and

transfer. TCC will implement a robust precollegiate outreach program through a High School

Transitions Coach to encourage students to enter college, along with a Benefits Navigator and

Financial Aid Specialist to ensure students have the necessary resources in place to achieve

success in higher education. NSU will hire two Student Engagement Transfer Coordinators to

provide support to students in the transfer pipeline and customized programming to help them

make a smooth transition, including a summer bridge program, SOAR orientation, and ongoing

transfer student engagement programming. NSU will also renovate student engagement spaces to

increase visibility of Native American culture and heritage throughout their three campuses.

By the end of this five-year project, NSU and TCC expect to achieve the following

outcomes related to Native American and low-income students: 5% increase in college

admissions; 10% reduction in students who are admitted but do not enroll; 5% improvement in

fall-to-fall retention; 10% increase in students who transfer from TCC to NSU; 20 events to

celebrate Native American culture and heritage; and three renovated spaces to support student

learning and improve sense of belonging and campus engagement. Project includes the following

evidence-based interventions: student coaching, transition support to prevent summer melt,

summer bridge, social class intervention, and campus spaces that support positive Native

American identity development.

University of New Mexico Gallup (NM) $552,742.00

The University of New Mexico – Gallup (UNMG) branch, is a two-year, public Native American

Serving Non-Tribal Institution located in Gallup, NM. Situated in McKinley County, the branch

serves the northwest region of New Mexico and is in close proximity to the Navajo and Zuni

reservations serving a student population that is 76% Native American. The service area

struggles with a 30% poverty rate, a low level (12%) of residents with a bachelor’s degree or

higher, and a high school drop-out rate of 21%. Eighty-two percent of first year students at

UNMG obtain federal grants, while 60% receive state aid. Significant transportation, housing

and food insecurities, in addition to health disparities impact students and community residents.

By meeting UNMG’s mission to “prepare people to achieve their educational and professional

goals in a context of respect for the traditions and values of the many groups it serves”, UNMG

can bring about positive change for students and the community. To bring about this change,

UNMG proposes the Native American Student Success Initiative (NASSI) Project. Through

this Department of Education, NASNTI (Native American Serving Nontribal Institution) grant

totaling $2,938,736 over a five-year period, UNMG will achieve the following project goals:

• Implementation of a Native American Student Success Center that serves as a cultural

and college resource providing comprehensive college and community resources for

Native American students.

• Implementation of training for staff in the areas of advisement, financial aid and

academic support that relates to recruitment and retention of Native American students.

• Implementation of training for faculty related to retention of Native American students.

• Augmentation of student services to include a case manager knowledgeable in Native

American social services and increasing academic advisors.

• Implementation of Learning Communities, based on areas of interest, to advance

students’ sense of engagement and belonging.

• Planning and implementation of a Native American Cultural Center on campus.

Goal activities will lay the groundwork for a Native American Student Success Initiative that

strengthens Native American cultural awareness among students, faculty and staff, and engages

Native American students to promote student belonging and connectedness, including family
events, enrichment programs, peer mentoring and special-focus classes such as financial literacy.

The strategies listed here address Competitive Priority 1, Priority 2 and the invitational priority.

A grant from NASNTI will provide the seed funding to implement necessary institutional change

that will be self-sustaining.
Fort Lewis College (CO) $686,521.00

As Native American Serving Non-Tribal Institutions, San Juan College (SJC) and Fort Lewis

College (FLC) are proud to serve as the leading community college and four-year public college

serving the rural southwestern Four Corners region that connects New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona,

and Utah. The two colleges border the Navajo, Ute Mountain Ute, Southern Ute, Jicarilla Apache,

and Hopi Nations, and share a commitment to expanding the educational aspirations and increasing

the educational attainment of Native American students. SJC is located in Farmington, NM and

FLC is about sixty miles north in Durango, CO. FLC and SJC have the unique opportunity

to transform pathways from high school to work for underserved students in the region. The

Pathways for Opportunity, Wellbeing, Equity and Relationships (POWER) Project will

create culturally responsive cohorts to leverage strengths in student communities and foster social,

academic, and identity-safe belonging. FLC and SJC will develop innovative curricular and cocurricular

structures empower students to explore careers paths that align with their values and

develop skills to contribute to their communities. Mentors will guide underserved students at every

stage of their academic journey so they can access networks of holistic support. The POWER

Project will be supported by these four integrated initiatives.

POWER Project Initiatives:

• Initiative # 1. Design innovative curricular and co-curricular structures to support student

success and increase access and completion for all learners;

• Initiative # 2. Expand and innovate culturally responsive models of mentorship with a

focus on belonging and inclusion (CPP 1);

• Initiative # 3. Develop an expanded career pathway to guide students from high school to

work (CPP 2); and

• Initiative # 4. Create structures for first-year and transfer student cohorts (CPP 1).

Enacting the set of four integrated academic success initiatives outlined above will result

in measurable outcomes that will achieve FLC’s and SJC’s retention, graduation, equity, and

access goals.

These structures that emphasize belonging and wellbeing directly address the needs of NA students

at SJC and FLC. Achieving the goals of the project will generate approximately $400,000 in
additional annual tuition income by year 5 of the project, creating a strong fiscal foundation upon

which further institutional improvements can be pursued.