American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) Advisory Committee

The purpose of the American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) Advisory Committee is to advise the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) on educational matters that directly affect American Indian and Alaska Native students, families, and Tribal communities across Oregon. The Committee plays a critical role in ensuring that Tribal voices, lived experiences, and sovereign perspectives meaningfully inform state education policy and practice. Through sustained collaboration, the AI/AN Advisory Committee helps ODE align its work with Tribal priorities, federal and state responsibilities, and culturally grounded approaches to student success.

A central responsibility of the Advisory Committee is to guide the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of the 2025–2030 American Indian/Alaska Native Student Success Plan (SSP). The SSP is a strategic, statewide framework designed to improve educational outcomes and experiences for AI/AN students from early learning through graduation. Grounded in Tribal sovereignty, cultural strength, and data-informed decision-making, the plan outlines clear goals, measurable objectives, and coordinated actions to address opportunity gaps while uplifting Native excellence. This collaborative process ensures that the SSP is not a static document, but a living plan that evolves through Tribal consultation, community feedback, and continuous evaluation.

The priorities of the AI/AN Advisory Committee, in alignment with the AI/AN Student Success Plan, include:

• Goal 1: Champion Tribal Languages
  Support the revitalization, preservation, and integration of Tribal languages in educational systems as foundational to student identity and success.

• Goal 2: Address Inequity in Native Student Data
  Improve data accuracy, transparency, and use to better understand student experiences, inform decision-making, and hold systems accountable.

• Goal 3: Pursue Native Excellence
  Promote strengths-based approaches that recognize and elevate the academic, cultural, and leadership potential of AI/AN students.

• Goal 4: Cultivate Holistic Systems of Support
  Advance culturally responsive, community-centered supports that address academic, social, emotional, and cultural well-being.

• Goal 5: Center Culturally Responsive Approaches
  Ensure teaching, learning, and policy decisions honor Indigenous knowledge systems, histories, and contemporary realities.

Through its work, the AI/AN Advisory Committee strengthens partnerships between Tribes and the state, advances educational equity, and helps ensure that AI/AN students are supported to thrive in ways that honor their identities, cultures, and communities.

If you have questions or need assistance, please contact us by email at least two business days before the scheduled meeting at Renee.RomanNose@ode.oregon.gov