Transition for American Indian Educators and Administrators

Service: Transition training for American Indian educators and administrators who work with high school youth preparing for post secondary experiences.

Provider: Jean Ness, Ed.D.

Audience: Typical audiences for this service include reservation business committees, tribal councils, tribal colleges, reservation schools, public schools with Indian educators, others working with American Indian youth at risk/in transition throughout Minnesota and the nation.

Past Clients: Past Minnesota clients have included Carlton Public Schools; Cloquet Public Schools; Duluth Public Schools; Fond du Lac Reservation; Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College; and the Minnesota Department of Education. Additionally, American Indian tribes throughout the country have contracted with Dr. Ness to assist in the area of transition.

About the Trainer: Jean Ness has a B.S. in elementary education and mental retardation from the University of Minnesota, Duluth, an M.S. from The University of St. Thomas in Learning Disabilities and Emotional Disturbances, and an Ed.D. from the University of Minnesota in Educational Policy and Administration. Her research is in the retention of American Indian students in tribal colleges. She has been a Project Coordinator, Project Director, and Principal Investigator at the University of Minnesota for 14 years. Her projects focus on: preparing students with learning disabilities for college; teacher training for regular instructors in the technical and community colleges to work with students with disabilities in the regular classroom; training for paraprofessionals in educational settings; preparing American Indian youth for college; and developing culturally appropriate programs in business/finance for American Indian students. She has been a teacher, trainer, and presenter on these and other topics for 33 years.

Contact: For more information on this service offered by Jean E. Ness, please contact her at –

Jean Ness, Ed.D.

Institute on Community Integration

University of Minnesota

15 Pattee Hall

150 Pillsbury Drive SE

Minneapolis, MN 55455

Phone: 612-625-5322

Fax: 612-624-9344

E-mail: nessx008@umn.edu

This page was last updated on October 3, 2006