While setting an example for his family, Carlston, now a 25-year-old environmental science major at Navajo Technical College with a 3.8 grade point average, was also helping tribal colleges throughout the continent in their efforts to get more American Indian males on reservations to further their education.
The ambitious efforts to recruit American Indian males are working, despite an abundance of hurdles, including lack of money to pay for college, few peer and mentor incentives, and important family obligations that don’t seem to leave much time for pursuits like college.
American Indian male enrollment at tribal colleges and universities has risen 19 percent in the past six years, according to the American Indian Higher Education Consortium. That translates into 5,807 male students out of a total tribal enrollment of some 18,400, according to AIHEC data.
