ABSTRACT
Many American Indian students complete associate degrees from accredited American Indian tribally controlled community colleges. After graduation, they transfer to four-year institutions and fail to complete baccalaureate degree programmes (Jeanotte 1988). Research demonstrates that this is not an unusual phenomenon. Clark (1960), Olivas (1979), Eckland (1981), Cohen & Chacon (1982), Astin (1985), Cohen & Brawer (1987) and McNamara (1982) have concluded that community college transfer students do not graduate from four-year colleges at the same rates as students who initially enrolled at four-year institutions. Clark (1960), Lamberts (1977), McNamara (1982) and Astin (1985) found that students who transfer from community colleges to four-year institutions experience a drop in grade point averages in the year after transfer and many drop out of school subsequent to the time of transfer.
