Native students at Arizona State University say they have to combat stereotypes and misperceptions about tribal culture.

"[They think] that we're drunks, that we're freeloaders, that we think we deserve special treatment or the United States government always takes care of us, that we're lazy, that we're fat, that we're ugly," Kimi Serna, a member of the Gila River Indian Community, told the ASU Web Devil.

Kim TallBear, an assistant professor of American Indian studies, says Native students are often treated as a single group when they are more diverse. "I have so many Dine students and I'm astounded by how different we can be," said TallBear, who is Dakota.

American Indians and Alaska Natives make up about 2.5 percent of the student population. But only 65 percent of freshman make it to the second year, and only about a quarter graduated within six years.

Get the Story:
Keeping the culture (The ASU Web Devil 11/2)

Relevant Links:
Office of the Special Advisor to the President on American Indian Affairs - http://www.asu.edu/president/zah

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