Sustained Economic Growth of the Oglala Lakota Nation through Development of the Technological Infrastructure

奥格拉拉科塔学院（OLC）是一所部落控制和社区管理的四年制学术机构，拥有1300名学生，分布在南达科他州松岭保留地的10个学院中心。学生大约90%是美国印第安人。作为美国国家科学基金会指定的六个卓越模范机构（MIE）之一，OLC开发了基础设施，提供科学、工程、数学和技术（SMET）学位，并增加了继续读研究生的印第安人的数量。我们目前与SD矿业与技术学院（SDSM&amp；T）和SD州立大学签订了一般合作协议。自1995年以来，OLC的MIE项目在SMET领域开发了五个新的认证学位。目前，由于缺乏合格的设备和专业知识，奥格拉拉拉科塔国家被迫将所有的分析工作外包给保留地以外的实验室。我们的长期目标是培养一批高技能的科学家和实验室技术人员，他们将作为自雇企业家或受雇员工为社区服务。此外，我们的SMET计划的主要缺点之一是缺乏现代化的分析设备的实验室设施。这对我们的学生在职业生涯的各个阶段都是不利的。我们提出了一个多方面的方法来发展我们的机构和整个保留地的技术基础设施。我们将建立一个研究中心，里面有几个联邦和州认证的实验室，这将为我们提供在化学、环境科学和生物学领域进行研究和日常分析工作的能力。与SDSM&amp；T和黑山州立大学的三名教员在这些领域达成了合作协议。我们将积极寻求与部落机构建立伙伴关系，提供研究和分析服务。这确保了部落机构分配的大部分资金将重新注入保留地经济。这也将使该项目在国家科学基金资助之外得以维持。我们的教师和学生将由合作者通过工业短期课程、讲习班和研讨会对设备进行培训。双方合作者和教师将启动涉及我们的学生使用新设备的研究项目。我们将通过开发新的分析实验课程和加强现有的科学课程来加强我们的课程。最后，学生和教师将与保留地社区接触，帮助他们解决他们对经济发展和环境的担忧。学生和教师还将在保留地学校教授sme课程，并将为教师和学生开放实验室，以激发科学知识和好奇心。

Oglala Lakota College (OLC) is a tribally controlled and community governed four-yearacademic institution with 1300 students located in ten college centers across thePine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota (SD). The student base is approximately 90%American Indian. As one of six NSF-designated Model Institutions for Excellence (MIE), OLC has developed the infrastructure to offer Science, Engineering, Math andTechnology (SMET) degrees and increase the number of Native Americans continuing on to graduate school. We currently have general collaboration agreements with the SD School of Mines & Technology (SDSM&T) and SD State University. Since 1995, the MIE Program at OLC has developed five new accredited degrees in the SMET areas.Presently the Oglala Lakota Nation is forced to outsource all analytical work to off-reservation labs due to the lack of qualified facilities and expertise. Our long-term goal is to train a pool of highly skilled scientists and lab technicians who will servetheir communities as self-employed entrepreneurs or hired employees. Also, one of the major shortcomings of our SMET programs is the lack of lab facilities with modern analytical equipment. This creates a disadvantage for our students at every level of their career.We propose a multifaceted approach to develop the technological infrastructure of ourinstitution and the reservation as a whole. We will build a research center housing several federal and state certified labs that will provide us with the capacity to conductresearch and routine analytical work in the areas of chemistry, environmental science, and biology. Collaboration agreements with three faculty members at SDSM&T and Black HillsState University in these areas are procured for this proposal. We will actively seek partnerships with tribal agencies to provide research and analytic services. This insuresthat a significant portion of the funding allocated by tribal agencies would be re-infusedinto the reservation economy. This would also sustain the project beyond NSF funding.Our faculty and students will be trained on the equipment by the collaborators andthrough industrial short courses, workshops and seminars. Both collaborators and faculty will initiate research projects involving our students utilizing the new equipment. We will strengthen our curriculum by developing new analytical lab classes and byenhancing existing sciencecourses. Finally, students and faculty will reach out to reservation communities to help them address their concerns about economic development and the environment. Students and faculty will also teach SMETclasses at reservation schools and will open up the labs for teachers and students to stimulate scientific knowledge and curiosity .