Admissions engages with Native Americans

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Meredith Kirchoff
  • U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. --  Academy Admissions continues to engage with Native American around the country to increase Native American representation among the Cadet Wing.

Second Lt. Richard Kenny, of the Academy Admission's Diversity Recruiting Division, attended the Native American Student Advocacy Institute's annual event at the University of New Mexico April 19-20.

"We understand there is a tremendous untapped resource of qualified students in the Native American community who may not know about the Air Force Academy and what it offers," Lieutenant Kenny said.

NASAI, which was themed "strengthening connections for access and equity in education," allowed Admissions personnel to network with high school educators, guidance counselors and other college representatives to share ideas concerning Native American students.

Lieutenant Kenny cited connections made for future outreach to Native American students as the most valuable take-away from the NASAI conference.
Major topics included how to motivate Native American students towards higher education degrees, what resources are in place for these students and how to help them succeed at the post-secondary level.

"There are some really amazing programs already in place," Lieutenant Kenny said. For example, some schools have science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education enrichment programs targeted to Native American students.

"The Academy can get involved with some of these programs to help expose more Native American students to the Air Force Academy as an option to further their education and serve their country," he said.

Native American admissions at the Academy have declined since a high of 34 in the Class of 2010. The Class of 2012 has a low of seven, while the Class of 2013 includes 12 Native American cadets. In light of these numbers, Admissions has placed an emphasis on recruiting Native Americans, Lieutenant Kenny said.

"Through our engagement strategy we are working to turn the downward trend around and equip Native American communities with the knowledge of this opportunity," he said.
In the fall, representatives from the Academy traveled through the Navajo Nation of New Mexico and also attended the National Indian Education Association Convention in Milwaukee and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society in Portland, Ore.

Lieutenant Kenny said the highlight of these trips has been, "The ability to get the Air Force Academy name out there as a college that is looking for strong Native American students and that we are genuinely interested in the success of those students. And, that we are making active advances at the Academy to provide every resource possible for the students that may decide to come."

Two more avenues to reach out to Native American populations will come in the form of the Montana State Annual Powwow and the Stanford Powwow at Stanford University later this year.

To further expand resources, an AISES chapter of its own is on the horizon for the Academy. The chapter would complement the Native American History Club and provide awareness and a place for students to connect.

"Admissions will continue to pursue applicants of Native American ancestry," Lieutenant Kenny said. "We recognize there are challenges in the Native American communities, but we know there are students, who if given the opportunity, would excel at the Academy."