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Earning a PhD is an impressive feat.
Students study and research for years before defending their dissertation in front of a committee of scholars.
If successful, they are recognized with this highest degree, connoting mastery of their field of study.
TheNavajo Nationis a sovereign nation which stretches over 27,000 square miles in the American southwest.
It is also known asDine Bikeyah or Navajoland.
The vastreservationcovers part of Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona.
This Indigenous language is still widely spoken within the Navajo community, but it is consideredat risk.
It has since continued expanding and teaching according to both Western pedagogy and Dine tradition.
It previously offered bachelors, associates, and masters degrees, in addition to certificate programs.
Those programs are now joined by the first PhD program at a tribal college within the United States.
Over20 hopefulshave already applied for five spots in the fall.
To apply, a student must have both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree already.
The program will be supervised by Dr. Siri Tuttle and Dr. Franklin Sage (Dine).
Like many graduates who receive their PhDs, the future scholars may go on to teach after they graduate.
I thought it would be important to make that connection, Guysaid.
Individuals will get a degree and theyll be professionals.
You have to make it applicable.
By making it more meaningful, people will have an interest in it.
To learn more about the new program, check outNavajo Tech’s website.
Navajo Technical University has become the first tribal university to offer a PhD program.
The program is a Doctor of Philosophy in Dine Culture and Language Sustainability.
