Zhaabwii Learning Center

Department Contact

The Zhaabwii (Survival in Ojibwe) Learning Center is funded by the Native American and Alaska Native Children in Schools Program.

There are three individuals employed through this project. Cathie Gladue was selected as the Director in September of 2011, Doris Greenwood was selected as the Tracking Specialist in October of 2011 and Ina Mikkelson.

The project’s aim is to provide critical academic and tutorial support to students transitioning to and completing college.

The programmatic goals and objectives are:

• Goal 1: To increase student proficiency in English language.
  • Objective 1: Fifteen high school graduates will participate in the summer program each year with 60% having an English proficiency gain of at least 30% based on pre and posttest performance.
  • Objective 2: Each year, 40 first time/first year/high need students will be admitted to TMCC with at least fifty percent of the cohort completing a college level English course within three semesters of entry.

• Goal 2: To promote postsecondary retention and completion.
  • Objective 3: Each year, 10 high need students will be readmitted to TMCC with at least 70% maintaining satisfactory progress (2.5 GPA) in current courses.
  • Objective 4: A minimum of 60% of each cohort will persist to the second semester.
  • Objective 5: A minimum of 45% of each cohort will persist from year to year.
  • Objective 6: Twelve percent of program participants will complete a two year degree with three years of enrolling.

Each of the six objectives includes performance based measures which are also the outcomes of the project. In developing the outcomes, TMCC predicted performance for the project based on prior institutional experience for all students not just students in need of academic and tutorial support.

The Zhaabwii Learning Center’s goals and objectives are attainable through effective student intervention. Specific services include a bridge program for high school graduates transitioning to college; a computer assisted learning center to provide assistance in English language acquisition; tutorial services to help students; tracking to identify student needs at early stages; and the development of learning cohorts to build traditional support for students.