Minority programs & funding opportunities

Northern Arizona University ranks fifth in the nation for graduating Native Americans with bachelor’s degrees, according to Black Issues in Higher Education. It also ranked the university 61st for graduating Latinos with bachelor’s degrees. “Northern Arizona University has always been committed to recruiting and retaining minority and first-generation students, and this ranking demonstrates that our efforts are paying off,” says President John Haeger. “We will continue in this direction so that our student population reflects the diversity of Arizona and the Southwest.”

• Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP)
  The nationally recognized Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals acts as a catalyst among tribal governments, research and technical resources at the university, various federal, state and local governments, and the private sector, in support of environmental protection of Native American natural resources. ITEP offers summer internships, funded by the U.S. EPA, to provide hands-on training with the EPA or other governmental or tribal environmental offices. This 10-week internship offers a $4,000 stipend. (more info)
• National Institutes of Health
  Minority Student Development Program
  The National Institutes of Health have funded Northern Arizona University students since 1998 to help increase the academic performance, retention, and graduation rates of under-represented minorities, especially Native Americans, who are interested in careers in biomedical sciences. Undergraduate minority students have participated in research with faculty in the life, health, engineering, and physical sciences. Of this group, 83% have entered graduate programs. (more info)
• Native American Undergraduate Research Awards
  With the support of the John and Sophie Ottens Foundation, the university has initiated a research awards program to encourage first-year Native American students to consider careers in health-related professions and scientific research. Students are teamed with faculty for a 15-month period encompassing two summers and one academic year to experience and conduct research.
• Undergraduate Mentoring in Environmental Biology (UMEB)
  Participate in some of the most important regional work on environmental issues in the country! Funded by the National Science Foundation, our UMEB program provides opportunities to participate in cutting-edge research related to human impacts on ecosystems of the Colorado Plateau. Students take a two-semester course on scientific research methods and practices. During the second semester, they select a faculty mentor and spend the following summer working on research with their mentor. Research topics include the ecological impacts of global climate change, environmental impacts of livestock grazing, the effects of forest management on stream ecology, and other important regional issues. (more info)
• Undergraduate Student Training in Academic Research (U*STAR)
  Since 2002, the National Institutes of Health Minority Access to Research Careers Program has funded U*STAR at Northern Arizonal University. Through faculty-mentored research, U*STAR’s goal is to increase the pool of talented undergraduates who are well prepared academically, have research experience and competence, and are motivated to apply to graduate programs leading to the PhD or MD in the biomedical sciences. (more info)
• Native American Student Services (NASS)
  NASS is committed to providing culturally-sensitive support services to our Native American and Alaskan Native students as part of the university's mission. Our emphasis is on serving first-year freshmen and transfer students and providing assistance with the transition from home to the university community. Find more information on scholarships and other opportunities at their website. (more info)

Reaching for success
Monica Yazzi received a BA in Biology and an MS in Chemistry, both at Northern Arizona University. She is the first Native American student to be admitted to the prestigious Pharmacology and Toxicology Program at the University of Arizona, where she has begun work on a PhD.

As a freshman, Monica began working with Diane Stearns, associate professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry on the properties of chromium and its effects on DNA mutation while supported by Minority Student Development funds. One day while Monica was working with Dr. Stearns on lab techniques, they decided to experiment with depleted uranium. This led to a long-term study of the effects of depleted uranium on living tissues.

Monica began publishing articles in scholarly journals in her sophomore year. She has earned the Russell Powell Award from the Chemistry Department, Best Poster Presentation at the Arizona Nevada Academy of Sciences, Best Oral Presentation at a MSD/MARC symposium, and several certificates of appreciation. Monica trained another Native American undergraduate, Hertha Woody, to take her place in Stearns’s lab.