Despite Rocky Path North Dakota Tribal College Finds Success

(UTTC via Prairie News Service)

(By Mike Moen. Prairie News Service) – North Dakota colleges serving Native American students are experiencing ups and downs with federal support but it is not stopping their careful planning to open more educational pathways, and one campus leader’s work is receiving national praise.

North Dakota’s Tribal College System has five campuses spread across the state, including United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck.

Leander McDonald, president of the school and a member of the Spirit Lake Dakota Nation, said he saw a big need to update policies when he arrived more than 10 years ago, including everything from academics to the employee handbook to financial procedures – and he felt working with the board of directors on refining the areas was an important part of their strategy.

“We took them on about one at a time while at the same time doing our daily operations,” McDonald recounted. “There was a little bit of a heavy lift but I think in the long run, it really did set the foundation for moving forward.”