Decolonizing Philanthropy: Co-Creating A Transformational Indigenous Learning Strategy at the American Indian College Fund

Philanthropic organizations are adopting culturally responsive learning and evaluation practices that value different types of knowledge, uplift local expertise, and prioritize participation and partnership. This presentation describes how the American Indian College Fund, an Indigenous-led 501(c)(3) non-profit organization focused on Native higher education, with support from Indigenous-owned Bowman Performance Consulting, has built its own transformational Indigenous learning strategy (TILES) from the ground up to decolonize its learning practices and meet organizational needs. TILES centers five Indigenous learning values co-created with its staff, describes the College Fund’s unique learning philosophy, which reflects longstanding Indigenous beliefs about the value of learning for community benefit, and provides a framework for gathering and reflecting on impact data in more culturally responsive ways. This talk highlights how TILES prioritizes relationality, lived experience, and Native voice, and serves as a model for other non-profit organizations who want to create culturally responsive learning strategies.

Nicole Bowman, Ph.D. – Principal and Founder, Bowman Performance Consulting; Jeremy Braithwaite, Ph.D. – Co-Founder, EvaluAct