Claremont Native American Fellowship

Through a partnership with the US Department of Education’s Office of Indian Education, Claremont Graduate University will award selected Native Americans with a generous support package to help them earn a California preliminary K-12 teaching credential and master’s in education in as little as 13 months.

The fellowship provides selected Native American students with full tuition support and a stipend for living expenses, in addition to two years of job-based mentoring once they complete the program, so that they emerge as teachers prepared with the skills needed to promote educational excellence in their communities.

The CNA Fellowship support package

• A 100% tuition fellowship to complete Claremont Graduate University’s preliminary teaching credential and master’s in education program
• A living stipend while taking teacher credential classes ($1,500/month for up to 18 months)
• Student fees (both university and department)
• A laptop
• Support for student health care coverage (up to $6100/year while enrolled up to 18 months)
• Support (transportation, hotel, and food) to attend select CGU-based sessions
• Two years of post-program job mentorship. (Fellows need not be in California for this phase of the program.)

In exchange for the financial support, CNA Fellows must be employed after completing their programs at CGU as a teacher in an eligible school for as many months as they received support.

Program Details

Ten Native Americans will be selected as CNA Fellows to start classes in August 2022.

View Sample Timelines

Who Can Become a CNA Fellow?

CNA Fellows must be admitted to CGU’s Department of Teacher Education preliminary K-12 teaching credential and master’s in education program, must agree to the CNA Fellowship service commitment, and must be able to document that they meet any one of the following requirements in the US Department of Education’s definition of “Indian”:

• Be a member of an Indian tribe or band, as membership is defined by the Indian tribe or band, including any tribe or band terminated since 1940, and any tribe or band recognized by the State in which the tribe or band resides.
• Be a descendant of a parent or grandparent who meets the requirements described above.
• Be considered by the Secretary of the Interior to be an Indian for any purpose.
• Be an Eskimo, Aleut, or other Alaska Native.
• Be a member of an organized Indian group that received a grant under the Indian Education Act of 1988 as it was in effect on October 19, 1994.

Applicants to the Teacher Education program who wish to be considered for the CNA Fellowship must show that they, their parent, or their grandparent is a recognized member of a federally- or state-recognized tribe. Candidates need to meet the state’s basic skills requirement and its subject matter competency requirement. Contact Teacher Education’s program coordinator (Melanie.Kerr@cgu.edu) to have your materials evaluated.

Credentials Offered

The CGU Difference

Claremont Graduate University’s Department of Teacher Education prepares a special kind of K-12 teacher: one committed to cultivating the achievement of all students. CGU teachers acknowledge that variables like poverty, language fluency, and disabilities are challenges, but they also know that they are not barriers that legitimize a student’s failure or that justify educators lowering their expectations or their own commitment.

We believe the best way to prepare highly effective teachers is to put theory into practice through mentor-guided teaching experiences in real-world settings. Our graduates are highly recruited, get promoted more quickly, and are fast-tracked into leadership positions.

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