The University of New Mexico

NEWS RELEASE

Media Contact: Sari Krosinsky, (505) 277-1593, michal@unm.edu

May 28, 2008

UNM, Jemez Pueblo Partner to Create Early College for Native Youth

UNM President David Schmidly, Jemez Pueblo Governor Paul Chinana, Walatowa High Charter School Board President Ryan Toya and Principal Tony Archuleta have signed a memorandum of understanding to solidify a partnership creating dual enrollment opportunities for Native American students.

Schmidly said, “We want to work with you to get as many Native American students as possible into college and graduating.”

Funded in part by a $12 million, eight-year Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant, with support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Ford Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Lumina Foundation for Education, the Center for Native Education’s early college high schools aim to increase the number of Native American students who graduate and go on to college. Partnerships between tribal, high school and college stakeholders allow early college students the opportunity to earn up to two years of college credit while still in high school.

Walatowa High Charter School fills a need in a district that struggles with only 29 percent of its 11th grade American Indian students meeting or exceeding proficiency on state reading assessments – a figure that compares to an overall 58 percent in New Mexico. On state math assessments, 18 percent of the district’s native students were proficient, compared with 31 percent of all New Mexico 11th graders. On average, students in early colleges for native youth experience a 32 percent increase in state reading scores and a 15 percent increase on math scores.

Chinana said, “We’re talking about the future and we’re working for our future leaders.”