The Number of Native American students counted in Washington schools is lower than the actual number. A new report led by WSU Office of Tribal Relations Director Zoe Higheagle Strong, of the Nez Perce Tribe, shows the mis-counted number ultimately affects student retention, as well as school funding, student services, and scholarships.
The report notes that in 2007 the number of native students started to decline when the U.S. Department of Education changed the way it counts race and ethnicity. Native Americans who identified as more than one race, or as having Hispanic/Latino ethnicity, were counted in those categories, not as American Indian or Alaska Native.
The report goes on to say the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction’s website is “highly inaccurate” when it’s counting students who have tribal membership, but aren’t being recognized as American Indian. According to the study, nearly 36,000 students in Washington State alone were undercounted in public education over a four-year period.
Higheagle Strong said the solution has to come from legislative action requiring more accurate counting of Native American students in K–12 and higher education.
She says the new report reflects the hard work that tribes and school districts have undertaken to build relationships and improve programs and experiences for Native students in Washington.
“Our state is one of the leaders in the United States,” she said. “It happened through relationships, and there is still a lot of work to do.”
