Understanding Tribal College and Universities

Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) are higher education learning institutions often defined as 1994 land grant institutions. The youngest of the land grant institutions, TCUs engage in research focusing on community, education, and technological advancement. Land grant institutions often have collaboration opportunities in research and outreach. The College of the Muscogee Nation (CMN) was founded in 2004 and received its accreditation in 2016. The research examples provided were conducted at the College of the Muscogee Nation.

This Virtual Professional Development Module focuses on introducing information about Tribal Colleges. The second portion of the webinar will describe examples of research related to Family Consumer Science conducted by a TCU. .

As a result of attending this sessions, participants will be able to:

1. Examine how TCUs engage in local community and tribal needs.
2. Classify collaboration research between differing land grant institutions.
3. Determine how working with a TCU or attending a TCU may be choice for the participant.
4. Discern how TCUs maintain a balance between indigenous culture and academic rigor.

Members: To view and access the resources for the module, you must be logged in to your MyAAFCS account.

Resources for this professional development module include the following:

• Resource documents provided by presenters
• Weblinks to additional resources
• AAFCS Professional Development PDU Certificate

Meet the Presenters

Cynthia Sanders has earned bachelor's degrees from Northeastern State University in biological and human family consumer science with an emphasis on dietetics. She will celebrate completing her master's degree from Oklahoma State University and continuing her graduate training at the Ph.D. level. In January 2024, she will have taught at CMN for fifteen years, with ten years as a full-time faculty member. Cynthia’s research work experience focuses on aquatic health and environmental remediation. It also includes introducing students to the Mvskoke traditional diet before European contact and how modern dietary choices and exercise activity levels can affect overall health. Cynthia is currently working with students on cultivating a sustainable food forest crop while analyzing its nutritional content. She participates in a land grant collaboration called "Coming Together for Racial Understanding." This group creates opportunities to encourage regional dialogue about equity resource community concerns regarding race.

Dr. Lorna Saboe-Wounded Head is a Family Resource Management Field Specialist who works for South Dakota State University Extension. Her mission is to educate consumers about managing their resources, specifically finances, to improve their well-being. After working in the field of family and consumer sciences for almost 30 years, Lorna views her work through the lens of the FCS Body of Knowledge by understanding individuals, families, and communities influence and effect on meeting basic human needs.

Lorna has taught middle schoolers to adults about financial management. She has published 14 journal articles on family and consumer sciences topics and reviewed manuscripts for six academic journals.

Lorna has been a member of AAFCS since 1989 and has served on the Nominating Committee, Awards and Recognition Committee, Ethics Committee, and Annual Conference Planning Committee. She has also served as the Vice President of Recognition and President of the South Dakota Affiliate. Lorna has served on the Board of Directors since 2021 as a Director at Large, President, and currently the Past President. She holds the CFCS and CPFFE certifications.