Humboldt State University (HSU) proposes to establish a Coalition for American Indians in Computing (CAIC) in order to recruit American Indian students, meet their unique retention needs, and provide computer science programs geared toward employment opportunities in tribal communities. The proposed project is a collaboration between faculty in Humboldt's Computing Science Department and the staff of several specialized programs (the Center for Indian Community Development, the Natural Resource, Science and Engineering Program, and the Indian Teacher and Educational Personnel Program). In addition, it is a collaboration between HSU programs and northern California tribes. The CAIC will involve students' families, tribal communities, faculty advisors, peers, specialized student support services personnel, and tribal IT professionals in culturally appropriate mentoring and career development activities. These activities will validate tribal values, address tribal computing needs, and foster Indian students' sense of self-efficacy and leadership potential. The CAIC project will include campus visits by Indian students, parents, tribal community leaders, and tribal IT professionals. It will also include exchange visits by University faculty to tribal governments, enterprises, and organizations that represent a variety of technology applications for which Indian students will be prepared. CAIC will run summer camps for high school and community college students that offer pre-college academic preparation, career planning, tribal internships, and orientations to specialized student support services. Finally, CAIC will engage in collaborative adaptations of HSU computing curricula to address the specific needs of tribes for well-trained Indian technologists; and involvement of Indian CS/CIS students in real, tribally-based service learning, research experience, and problem-solving projects.
