Native American Education

When Eleazar Wheelock drew up the charter for Dartmouth College in 1769, he linked the institution to the "education of Youth of the Indian tribes" as well as "English Youth and any others." During the College's first decade, some 40 Indians studied at Dartmouth, though not all graduated. Following Wheelock's death in 1778, only a handful of Native Americans attended the College for nearly two centuries. Yet Dartmouth lore held fast to the historical tie.

Finally replacing myth with reality, President John Kemeny renewed Dartmouth's commitment to Native American education by actively recruiting Indian students, as well as establishing the Native American Program in 1970 and Native American Studies in 1972. Since then more than 142 Indians have attended Dartmouth, making the College the Ivy League leader.

No longer an unusual sight: Athabascan IndianSiobhan Wescott '89 gets her degree from thepresident.