American Indian Culture and Research Journal

In this article, the authors present results from a survey project that focused on the experiences of postsecondary American Indian (AI)/Alaska Native (AN)/Native Hawaiian (NH) students. They acknowledge that there are political and historical differences among and within these three broad categories of indigenous people; however, the research focuses on a few common obstacles to educational attainment for indigenous peoples in the United States. In the current study, they feel that it is appropriate to incorporate all three groups. The purpose of this study is to generate a profile of characteristics that contribute to, or at least are related to, the success of AI/AN/NH postsecondary students. They discuss the survey responses provided by a diverse Native student population currently enrolled in various postsecondary institutions across the United States. In particular, they found intriguing relationships between the family and cultural experiences of their survey respondents and their educational attainment. These findings provide a clear path for the future investigation of factors that affect educational attainment and the success of AI/AN/NH college and graduate students. The final portion of the article discusses the ways in which the authors plan to establish important collaborations with various indigenous nations, groups, and organizations that might be interested in the links among Native language, culture, and educational attainment.