Our Leadership

Hau’ Mitakiyapi (Hello my relatives):

On behalf of the Board of Directors, administration, and staff, I welcome you to the United Tribes Technical College (UTTC) campus! UTTC is a nonprofit corporation owned and governed by the five Indian tribes located wholly or in part within the state of North Dakota. UTTC has provided quality certificates, associates of applied science, and baccalaureate, programs of study to native and non-native students since being established 47 years ago.

We are committed to supporting you in the completion of the education program of your choice by providing a challenging learning environment based in academia and culture. One of our goals is to enhance your educational experience by exposing you to native leadership at the UTTC Tribal Leaders Summit held on an annual basis. Native leaders from throughout the region and the nation attend this event to share successful models that are addressing critical issues for their communities and nations. We are also home to the UTTC International Powwow, named one of the top 10 powwows in Indian Country, by the Indian Country Today Media Network and USA Today in 2014.

The Campus Planner and Campus Services have worked hard to complete the renovation of the Jack Barden Center (JBC) upper level to a one-stop shop for Student Services. The JBC lower level was renovated to the Student Union complete with computer lab (20 stations), television room, and the Cozy Creek Café. Sitting Bull Hall (men’s dorm) was also updated with new windows and doors, bathrooms, and new paint and carpet.

Academic Affairs have refined the programs of study to meet the recent changes to Title IV (Pell) by decreasing the credit requirements to 24 credits for certificates, 60 credits for an associate of applied sciences, and 120 credits for the baccalaureate programs. UTTC was also recently approved by the Higher Learning Commission to add a Bachelors of Science in Environmental Science to the current bachelors’ offerings of Elementary Education, Criminal Justice, and Business Administration.

These programs of studies are where a huge majority of enrollment is concentrated and closely aligned with tribal workforce needs from the area. UTTC continues to collaborate with the North Dakota Association of Tribal Colleges and North Dakota University System to enrich a seamless transfer between tribal and state colleges. We also continue to work closely with the University of Mary and Bismarck State College campuses to provide multi-cultural seminars to enhance and expand our students’ academic experience.

We are here to support you as a student regardless of your academic or training interests and will do our best to help you complete your chosen program. We welcome you to the UTTC family! We are committed to providing a unique individual experience and hope you will be open to sharing your talents and backgrounds with others in our community. The Wellness and Land Grant programs offer a huge variety of campus-based activities and we hope you will participate not only in your classes but also explore all that UTTC has to offer. We are excited and honored to have you here, and we wish you tremendous success in your every endeavor!

Mitakuye Owasin (All My Relatives)

Leander “Russ” McDonald, PhD (Dakota/Arikara)
United Tribes Technical College President