This background paper examines the status of American Indians and Alaska Natives in higher education, with an emphasis on issues that influence American Indian and Alaska Native men’s enrollment and retention in college. Given the dearth of research on the educational experiences of this population, the paper reviews the relevant educational statistics and explores possible reasons why so many American Indian and Alaska Native men are not reaching college.

The Joint Center's 2002 National Opinion Poll on education found that the majority of whites rate their local public schools highly, while most African Americans and Hispanics give their schools only a fair grade. The questions in this survey of 2,463 adults (including 850 African Americans and 850 Hispanics) also examined opinions on school vouchers, government spending on education, and school violence.

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