Theses and Dissertations
Date of Award
2024
Document Type
Dissertation - NSU Access Only
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (EdD)
Department
Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice
Advisor
Willis Furtwengler
Committee Member
Roslyn Doctorow
Committee Member
Kimberly Durham
Keywords
Alaska Native, Native American, tribal colleges, indigenous, academic success, college persistence
Abstract
This applied dissertation was designed to better understand the factors that influence postsecondary persistence among Alaska Native students. Alaska Native students continue to have the lowest college persistence rate in the country (Benjamin et al., 1993; Brayboy et al., 2012; Bull, 2024; Guillory & Wolverton, 2008; Larimore & McClellan, 2005; National Center for Education Statistics, 2018; National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, 2022; Patterson Silver Wolf et al., 2021; Tachine et al., 2017). Alaska ranks 50th in the country when it comes to the number of students (33%) who enroll and graduate college within 6 years (Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education, 2023; National Center for Education Statistics, 2024). It is a priority to increase college persistence for Alaska Native students, and initiatives have been implemented in Alaska high schools and universities across Alaska, as well as tribal colleges across the United States, yet Alaska Native students continue to lag far behind their peers when it comes to persisting in college.
In this qualitative study, several factors that have an influence on postsecondary education persistence for Alaska Native students were identified. These factors include teachers, the opportunity to take courses that involve career research and postsecondary planning, college readiness, the ability to adapt to a college culture, having a sense of belonging, having adequate counseling support, access to tutoring services both at the high school and college level, and the ability to navigate higher education landscape including processes such as financial aid.
NSUWorks Citation
Miranda Bacha. 2024. Understanding Postsecondary Persistence Based on the Perspective of the Lived Experiences of Alaska Native Students. Doctoral dissertation. Nova Southeastern University. Retrieved from NSUWorks, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice. (682)
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/fse_etd/682.
