The Foundation for Indigenous Education, Leadership Development, and Sustainability
FIELDS builds a bridge to Native American self-reliance through higher education and career success, with mentoring, tutoring, and career pathways tied to each tribe's regional economy.
Our Mission
To serve as a catalyst in cultivating Native American self-reliance, leadership, and prosperity by facilitating Native American higher education and career success and building human capital for sustainable economic and community development.
Education and employment success that creates self-reliance and effective leadership to help strengthen and fortify Native American communities.
Regional economy-focused tribal workforce planning, high-contact mentoring and support, and self-reliance-focused Native American curriculum.
Empowered tribal nations and strengthened Native American leaders and tribal members.
The Challenge
For generations, many Native American people have struggled to achieve self-reliance and prosperity. Many tribes now face severe poverty, and without support and mentorship, many Native Americans are unable to complete their education and secure meaningful employment. Many tribal communities are virtually isolated from the mainstream economy.
A buffalo jump is a cliff over which Plains tribes historically drove bison. FIELDS likens today's crisis to herding people toward that cliff: extremely high rates of poverty, suicide, and other social pathologies. FIELDS programming is the bridge away from the edge.
live below the poverty line, the highest of any race group
higher suicide rate for young adults ages 15–24 than the general population
as likely to drop out of high school as the general population
less earned by AI/AN bachelor's degree holders than the general population
Figures as published in FIELDS' introduction materials. The same materials report an alcoholism rate 519% higher than the general population.
FIELDS Services
A comprehensive, systematic set of education and career engagement services, linked directly to regional economic opportunity and built to honor Native American culture, languages, and principles of sustainability. Select a span.
Peer-to-peer and adult-to-youth mentoring for middle school, high school, and adult learners. Every FIELDS program is paired with mentoring and tutoring delivered by volunteers.
What Sets FIELDS Apart
Mentoring and tutoring accompany every FIELDS program, available to each student and delivered by volunteers. Many Native American students are not given the support they need in their studies and are left to navigate the system on their own, which often leads to failure.
The FIELDS team has extensive experience and success in teaching and mentoring Native American students. FIELDS' programs are based on sound research to meet the specific needs of Native American learners.
The FIELDS Formula
Building capacity in the community to create self-reliance and prosperity. FIELDS works with each tribal nation in four stages.
FIELDS works with a tribal community to assess its regional economy.
Identify career pathway opportunities in regional industries, plus the higher education and training programs that prepare tribal members to enter them.
High-contact mentoring, tutoring, instruction, advising, and workplace internships guide tribal students through their programs.
Curriculum in financial literacy, academic preparation, Indigenous economic, organizational, and sustainable development, entrepreneurship, and related disciplines.
Impact of FIELDS
Current Projects
FIELDS has implemented two initial projects serving parts of these regions, using a phased approach to deploy education and career engagement services to tribal communities.
In the future, FIELDS will deploy these services to other tribes across the U.S., Canada, and beyond.
Our Team
Key members of the FIELDS team are tribal members, with the expertise to develop, implement, and evaluate programs built on the unique educational and economic needs of the Native American community.
Doyle has over 25 years of experience in higher education leadership, economic development, business education, and community development for Native American people. He has extensive Native American higher education mentorship, program delivery, and curriculum development experience, and a record of success educating and training many of today's top Native American business and community leaders.
Member, Red Pheasant Cree Nation · Saskatchewan, CanadaKirk DooleyDirector of Operations
Elise BlaserPrograms and Development Officer
Roger EdmundsDirector of Relationship Management
Get Involved
Investing in FIELDS increases self-reliance in the Native American community and engages a tremendous economic development and labor resource. How do you want to help?
Become a Donor. Email FIELDS and the team will follow up with how your gift supports Native American students.
Email FIELDS →Contact Us