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LOGAN — Utah State University announced Monday the launch of a new scholarship for Native American students that covers tuition and student body fees that are not covered by other scholarships and grants.
USU is the latest Utah university to offer such an initiative for Native American students. The University of Utah announced a tuition waiver last summer and Southern Utah University followed suit earlier this spring. Similar announcements have been made at universities across the U.S.
"The Native American Student Scholarship is USU's continued commitment to Native American students and the communities they call home," said Kristian Olsen, associate vice president for USU Blanding, in a statement. "We know this will help many students who want to attend university but are concerned about paying the tuition. This scholarship will remove that barrier so all Native American students can pursue their dream of getting a higher education."
Fall enrollment data shows that just 1.4% of USU students across the university's 30 locations were Native American. However, the Blanding campus' student population is over 65% Native American, according to the USU statement. In Utah, 1.6% of the population is Native American.
Members of federally recognized tribes in and around Utah who are seeking technical education certificates or associate and bachelor's degrees will be eligible for USU's scholarship. Both new and continuing students are encouraged to apply on the university's website.
USU will begin awarding the scholarship in July 2023 ahead of the fall semester. It is available for up to eight semesters or degree completion.
The scholarship aims to help close the gap for Native students, many of whom are first-generation students and struggle to make ends meet. According to data published by the National Center for Education Statistics in 2021, only 36% of Native American students in 2014 were able to complete their degrees in six years, compared to 60% of all other students.
Dustin Jansen, director of the Utah Division of Indian Affairs and a Utah Valley University professor, has stressed that the types of Native American scholarships offered by Utah universities are not discriminatory since "Indian" is not just an ethnic minority but a legal status. This means students who are ethnically Indigenous but not enrolled members of a tribe would not be eligible.
"Doing something like this and limiting it to members of enrolled tribes avoids the attack that this is discrimination against other ethnic minorities in the state," Jansen told KSL.com when the U. announced its scholarship. "This tuition waiver is being offered because they are a member of a federally recognized tribe. As a state institution, this is a government-to-government agreement."
