Connecting Tribal and Pacific Rim Colleges to Improve Indigenous Environmental Technology Education

NSF Indigenous Education
About the project:
In this National Science Foundation (NSF) – funded initiative (DUE #1204627), National PETE is assisting Tribal and Pacific Rim Colleges in improving their Environmental Technology programs as a means to provide education to build an informed and up-to-date environmental “green” workforce. The project strives to improve, enhance, or create environmental science programs at the nations’ Tribal and Pacific Island Colleges. To be eligible to apply, your institution needs to be a Pacific Island or Tribal College.
Project Goals:
National PETE will reach out to the 37 Tribal Colleges and colleges in the Pacific Rim (U.S. Territories). Educators will be provided with technical and pedagogical skills to better instruct Indigenous students and prepare them for new and sustainable “green jobs.”
Grant Information (Inactive):
Program Archives, Downloads, and Resources
2013 Recipients:
- Guam Community College, Guam
- Nebraska Indian Community College, Nebraska
- Northern Marianas College, Saipan
2014 Recipients:
- College of Menominee Nation, Wisconsin
- Dine College, Arizona and New Mexico
- Fort Berthold Community College, North Dakota
- Stone Child College, Montana
National PETE and ATEEC (the Advanced Environmental and Energy Center) provide on-site technical expertise to help colleges through one or more of the following activities:
- Conduct Program Assessment to better tailor an existing degree/certificate program or to develop a new degree/certificate program to match local environmental job opportunities with the Tribe, local, state and Federal governments, non-profits, business and industry employers. This process is called “Developing a CurriculUM” or “DACUM”. For more about this process, click here.
- Develop an Environmental Technology Jobs Chart which lists environmentally related job categories and the functions carried out by people in each type of job, for both Tribal and non-Tribal jobs in your region. This helps to answer students’ questions about “What can I do with a degree in X?” and will also be an excellent recruiting tool for your program.
- Develop or improve your plan for student recruitment, tracking and retention in your College’s environmental degree/certificate program(s).
- Develop a local “Advisory Committee” for your science/environmental degree/certificate programs. Advisory committees are composed of knowledgeable individuals from business, government, and industry who are selected to advise and consult with administrators and faculty on the educational programs of an institution.
There are currently no opportunities available for application.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What exactly is a DACUM?
- DACUM is an acronym for Developing a Curriculum. Learn more about what it is here
What qualifies PETE and ATEEC to provide services for Tribal Colleges?
- PETE links the technical resources of DOE, EPA, and NASA Laboratories, federal and state agencies, private industry, and professional societies with participating community colleges to assist in the development of curricula for training environmental health and safety technicians and to encourage more transfer students to pursue environmentally related studies at four-year institutions. ATEEC similarly works in conjunction with PETE to achieve these objectives. Together their experience reaches across many diverse groups and their track record for success is substantial.
Who decides what services are offered to our Pacific Rim/Tribal college?
- Plain and simple – your college decides. PETE and ATEEC are simply there to enable the project to unfold. There is strict emphasis placed on letting the Tribal Colleges and Pacific Rim colleges decide where they want to go with the help that PETE and ATEEC provide.
Guam Community College – June 3 – 7, 2013
Topic: Resource Management
Download Lesson Plans:
- Hydroponics, Aquaculture, and Aquaponics
- Testing Ocean Water Quality and Possible Impacts from Human Activity Lab Exercise
- Changes in Resources Lab
- Science Application of Finite Mathematics
- Science Application of Developmental Mathematics and Pre-College Mathematics
- Science Application of Trigonometric Functions and its Applications, Sequences, Series, and Probability
- Ocean Fair Booths
- Integrating Water Quality Testing and a More Comprehensive Worldview to Chemistry Classes
- Introducing Students to GPS and GIS
- Community Based Scientific Method Projects
- Stream Ecosystem Lab
- Resource Management: Seasonal Calendars Activity
- S-curves and Snakes Activity
Fort Berthold Community College – July 21 – 25, 2014
Topic: Impacts of Energy Resource Development
Download Lesson Plans:
(created by instructors, for instructors)
- Algeblocks Mathematics Lesson Plan – Hands-on Activity
- Environmental Science – Alternative Energy Sources Activity – Class Brochure Activity
- Exponential and Logarithmic functions – Practical, real-life applications (Download PPT)
- Green Dream Home Competition for High School Students (Download PPT)
- Local Environmental Chemical Analysis Lab – Hands-on Field Laboratory Activity
- Mass Balance and Our Ocean’s Acidification – Lecture, Group Activity, and Lab (Download PPT)
- Salinity in Natural Waters and Hydraulic Fracturing Waters – Hands-on Laboratory Activity
- Tree Identification and Basic Orienteering with GPS Technology – Field Activity (Download ID Answer Sheet)
- Hydraulic Fracturing and the Health of our Water – Tribal Water Analysis Lab (Download PPT)
- Water Quality Testing Lab
- Oil Recovery on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation Lesson (Download PPT and PPT Text)
- Global Position System Lab Module – Hands-on Field Activity (Download Coordinates Spreadsheet)
Other Resources
Honolulu Community College – June 8 – 12, 2015
Topic: Climate Change – Its Impacts on Indigenous Populations
Download Lesson Plans (created by instructors, for instructors):
- Chemical Measurements – Precision and Accuracy – lab activity
- Density Demonstrations – hands-on activity
- Introduction to Biotechnology and Microbiology in the Study of Artic Microbes – field study
- Introduction to the water cycle and the importance of groundwater – activity
- Marine Biology Service Learning Project (download script)
- Ojibwe Moons & Seasons – high school science activity
- Climate Change and Volcanoes (Indigenous Translation of Science)
- Graphing Activity on Climate Change – math graphing activity
- Oceans and Climate – PowerPoint presentation on climate impacts to oceans, and activity
- Developing a climate change survey for use in a Native American community
- Service Learning Science Expo – year-long Marine Biology service learning initiative (including ocean fair rubric 2015 and Ocean Fair 2015 Song Lyrics)
- Research Lesson (Environmental Issues and You and Taking Care of Mother Earth)
- Lesson Plan for Global Climate Change
Watch Recorded Webinars:
- Indigenous Pedagogy Webinar
- Indigenous populations are often holistic learners, whereby learning is best achieved when individuals can see the “big picture.” Strategies to better engage your students.
- Connecting Tribal and Pacific Rim Colleges to Improve Indigenous Environmental Technology Education Webinar
- Implementation of lessons learned at past Fellows Institutes
- Creation of a culturally relevant Chemistry Laboratory Module
- Global Issues: Unifying Perspectives Among Groups
- Their insights into the Guam Fellows Institute (June 2013)
- Indigenous STEM Education Webinar
- Commonalities amongst pacific island and tribal students; challenges & opportunities
- Service learning
- How to build an interactive erosion table
- Their insights into the Guam Fellows Institute (June 2013)
- ATEEC Free Downloads – Download free environmental resources for use in your classroom or organization
- Best Practices in Environmental and Energy Technology Education at Tribal Colleges: A Guide for Improving Programs
- eERL Digital Library – Environmental and Energy Resources Library. Find environmental and energy resources for your classroom or for research.
- ITEP – Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals
- AANAPISIS – Asian American and Pacific Islander Higher Education Resource Center. Research, curricular content and other promising practices that are relevant and useful for the education community serving Asian American and Pacific Islander students.
- AIHEC – American Indian Higher Education Consortium
- PICED – Pacific Islands Center for Educational Development.
- NIEA – National Indian Education Association
- AICS – American Indian Cultural Support