Clatsop Community College will become the first higher education institution within the traditional homelands of the Chinook Indian Nation to grant free tuition to tribal members, the tribe said in a news release Saturday.
The tribe called it a “historic step” that “set the bar” for other colleges in Washington and Oregon.
The Chinook Nation, whose traditional territory includes southwest Washington and northwest Oregon, is not recognized by the federal government and its 3,000 members have been left out of grant and scholarship offerings extended to members of recognized tribes. Chinook members are not eligible for the Oregon Tribal Student Grant, for example, which covers the cost of college attendance for members of Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes.
“By providing free tuition, Clatsop Community College will change the lives of so many Chinookans who have already eagerly signed up and will set them up for a future many thought they would never have,” Tribal Council member Rachel Cushman said in a statement.
Clatsop comes after the University of Oregon announced earlier this year that it would include the tribe in its Home Flight program, which offers free tuition and other student benefits to Oregonians who belong to any of the 574 federally recognized tribes.
In the news release, Clatsop president Chris Breitmeyer said he saw “no other option” than to extend free tuition to Chinook members.
“Knowing that hundreds of tribes are receiving these incredible opportunities while the Chinook Indian Nation is left to fend for themselves should upset every single Oregonian,” Breitmeyer said in a statement. “It is our responsibility to do better by our Indigenous communities and we are proud to support the Chinook Indian Nation in this way.”
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Sami Edge covers higher education for The Oregonian. You can reach her at sedge@oregonian.com or (503) 260-3430.
