The Native American Achievement Center on the Montana State University Billings campus is starting the school year with more students than in 2020.
There was a 7% increase in undergraduate enrollment this fall. And double the amount of Indigenous students seeking graduate education from 13 to 26.
Director of American Indian Outreach for MSUB Sunny Day Real Bird says this year around 300 students enrolled but last year she had feared some of the students wouldn’t return.
“And so what we did was, we divided those students up, and my team reached out to them once a week, and they kind of checked in with them to make sure that they were getting connected with the right resources,” Real Bird said.
Real Bird says events for the start of school also help establish a community in Billings for new Indigenous students. A pow-wow on MSUB campus is scheduled for mid September, as well as a beading workshop, and an Apsaalooke Arrow Throwing tournament.
Taylar Stagner is Yellowstone Public Radio's Report for America's Indigenous affairs reporter.
