Data on Native Students

Youth . . .

• Compared to the general population, youth comprise a higher percentage of the Native population. The following table gives the percentage of youth in AI/AN and Native Hawaiian communities, as well as the general U.S. population. ¹

Public Schools . . .

• There are approximately 459,000 AI/AN students and 180,000 NHOPI students in the K-12 public school system nationally, comprising 1% and 0.4% of all public-school students, respectively. ²
• 93% of AI/AN students and 92% of NHOPI students attend public schools. ³
• The five states with the largest proportions of AI/AN public-school students are Alaska (22.0%), Oklahoma (12.0%), Montana (11.0%), South Dakota (10.7%), and New Mexico (10.3%). The five states with the largest proportion of NHOPI public-school students are Hawaii (26.6%), Alaska (3.0%), Utah (1.6%), Nevada (1.5%), and Washington (1.2%). ⁴
• About a quarter (24%) of AI/AN public-school students attend schools where the majority of students are AI/AN. On the other hand, about half (49%) attend schools where less than 10% of the student body is AI/AN. ⁵
• Only 7% of NHOPI public-school students attend schools where the majority of the student body is NHOPI; 70% attend schools where less than 10% of students are NHOPI. ⁶
• The high school graduation rate for AI/AN students in public schools was 74% in 2019, ⁷ up from 67% in 2012. ⁸
• School choice is limited for many AI/AN students. Traditional public schools are the only options in 84% of school districts with significant (greater than 25%) AI/AN student populations. This means that students in these districts have no charter, magnet, or BIE options available to them. ⁹

The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) . . .

• The Bureau of Indian education currently funds 187 schools for AI/AN students. Of those 187 schools, 130 are tribally controlled elementary and secondary schools, and 55 are BIE-operated elementary and secondary schools, and two are BIE-operated postsecondary institutions. ¹⁰
• A little under 7% of AI/AN students attended BIE-funded schools in the 2020-2021 school year. ¹¹
• During the 2020-2021 school year, 34,529 students went to BIE-funded schools. 24,240 of those students attended tribally controlled schools, and the other 10,289 attended BIE-operated institutions. ¹²
• The states with the highest number of BIE-funded students are Arizona (9,113 students), New Mexico (7,439 students), South Dakota (5,352 students), North Dakota (3,193), and Mississippi (2,104). ¹³

Poverty . . .

• Poverty disproportionately affects Native youth, as indicated by the following table. ¹⁴
• Over one-third (37%) of AI/AN students and one-quarter (25%) of NHOPI students attend high-poverty public schools. That is compared to just 8% of white public school students. ¹⁵
• 69% of AI/AN students and 59% of NHOPI students attend schools where more than half of all students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. ¹⁶

Teachers . . .

• Native students are less likely than their white peers to have a teacher that shares their racial and ethnic background. Nationwide, whereas 1% of students are AI/AN, only 0.5% of teachers are AI/AN. Similarly, NHOPI students comprise 0.4% of all students, but less than 0.2% of all teachers. ¹⁷
• The vast majority of teachers in majority-AI/AN schools are white (61%). In fact, only 29% of teachers in majority-AI/AN schools are AI/AN. ¹⁸
• In schools where the majority of students are NHOPI, 19% of teachers are NHOPI, and 26% are white. ¹⁹
• In Alaska, only 10% of teachersxx are AI/AN compared to 22% of students. ²¹
• Similarly, in Hawaii, only 10% of public-school teachersxxii are Native Hawaiian, compared to 24% of public-school students. ²³

Higher Education . . .

• 84% of AI/AN adults (age 25 and up) and 92% of Native Hawaiian adults have a high school diploma or higher. 21% of AI/AN adults and 24% of Native Hawaiian adults have a bachelor’s degree or higher. ²⁴
• There are 32 accredited Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) in the United States. Combined, they offer 358 total programs, including 181 associate degrees, 40 bachelor’s degrees, and 5 master’s degrees. ²⁵
• In 2019, TCUs had a total enrollment of 15,323 students, and 80% of those students (12,210) were AI/AN. Combined, they awarded 1,139 associate degrees and 378 bachelor’s degrees to AI/AN students. ²⁶

Proficiency . . .

• In 2019, Native students scored lower than their white peers on standardized tests. ²⁷

School Environment . . .

• 24% of AI/AN students attend rural schools, a rate more than 2.5 times that of any other racial or ethnic group. Around 2% of NHOPI students attend rural schools. ²⁸
• The Individuals with Disabilities Act covers 15% of AI/AN students in public schools. ²⁹
• A little over 3% of Native Hawaiian* children are disabled. ³⁰
• Nearly 2,000 schools in the United States have Native mascots, logos, or nicknames. The states with the highest number of secondary schools with such mascots are Ohio (77), California (75), New York (58), Illinois (52), and Texas (51). ³¹
• In 2018, over a quarter of AI/AN students aged 12-18 (27%) reported experiencing bullying within the last year. ³²
• AI/AN students are significantly more likely than any other racial group to report being afraid of attack or harm while at school— 14% of AI/AN students aged 12-18 reported these concerns. This rate is over twice that of any other racial or ethnic group and about three times the national average. ³³
• In 2019, a third (33%) of AI/AN high schoolers reported using alcohol with in the last month, ³⁴ and nearly a quarter (24%) reported that illegal drugs were made available to them on school property. ³⁵ Those rates were 42% ³⁶ and 17%, ³⁷ respectively, for NHOPI high schoolers.
• AI/AN students have some of the highest rates of suspension of any racial or ethnic group. A little over 21% of AI/AN middle and high schoolers reported having been suspended at least once in their life, compared to 12% of white middle and high schoolers. ³⁸

Home Environment . . .

• 22% of AI/ANs and 15% of Native Hawaiians speak a language other than English at home. ³⁹
• Native households are less likely to be able to adjust to remote or virtual learning. 10% of AI/AN and 6% of Native Hawaiian households were without access to a personal computer. Additionally, 20% of AI/AN households and 13% of Native Hawaiian households are without access to a broadband Internet subscription. ⁴⁰
• 15% of AI/ANs and 6% of Native Hawaiians do not have health insurance. ⁴¹