photo by: Conrad Swanson

A sign at the entrance to Haskell Indian Nations University is shown Friday, Aug. 5, 2016.

Haskell Indian Nations University administrators would like to get more of the school’s business students on a career path of managing Indian tribes across the country.

Students seeking bachelor’s degrees in business at Haskell can choose from two areas of emphasis, management or tribal management, Cheryl Chuckluck, dean of professional schools, told the Haskell Board of Regents Friday at the board’s fall meeting.

However, of 98 students enrolled in Haskell’s School of Business, only 15 currently are on the tribal management track, she said.

Since Haskell established its new mission statement, adopted October 2014 along with the Haskell 2020 strategic plan, university leaders have been looking for ways to align university offerings with it.

Haskell’s stated mission is to serve as “the leading institution of academic excellence, cultural and intellectual prominence, and holistic education to address the needs of Indigenous communities.”

Chuckluck said she’s realized that to meet that mission with regard to the business students, “strategic purposeful marketing” needs to occur. She said she will be brainstorming ways to do that.

“We’re supposed to meet the needs of the indigenous communities,” she said. “We’re looking to do a little more recruiting to let folks know what you can do with the tribal management track.”

Chuckluck said that although the general management track has a corporate perspective, the tribal management track includes courses such as Indian business law and tribal resources and economic development.

In a similar vein, Chuckluck said Haskell also should be reaching out to high school students interested in coming to Haskell and studying to become teachers.

If those students are contacted early, Haskell advisers can communicate the academic work they’ll need to complete in high school to be prepared to succeed at Haskell.

“The clock is already ticking in middle school if you ever want to be a teacher,” she said. “That’s part of the mission, is to meet the needs of Indian Country, and they need teachers.”