{"id":1284,"date":"2019-11-01T09:30:31","date_gmt":"2019-11-01T16:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/?p=1284"},"modified":"2024-07-23T11:14:32","modified_gmt":"2024-07-23T18:14:32","slug":"success-coach-native-american-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/success-coach-native-american-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Life experience helps student engagement manager support Indigenous students"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Eddie

Eddie Rodriguez knows what college is like as a member of a minority community. And as a first-generation college graduate, he knows what it takes to succeed.<\/p><\/div>\n

OSU Ecampus’ Eddie Rodriguez helps students from tribal communities thrive online<\/h2>\n

Students can face a variety of challenges when entering or re-entering the higher education landscape, from finding the right academic support to time management. As a first-generation college student and graduate, Eddie Rodriguez faced these challenges and others firsthand.<\/p>\n

Now, the sense of empathy and pride he feels as the student engagement program manager at Oregon State University Ecampus \u2013 including for students from Indigenous communities<\/a> \u2013 inspires him to serve in this role every day. As a first-generation student and Mexican-American, he can relate to the various obstacles different communities encounter when navigating higher education.<\/p>\n

\n

Serving tribal communities<\/h2>\n

OSU is increasing its outreach to Indigenous communities in Oregon and across the country, enabling tribal members to earn college degrees with the support from culturally responsive faculty and staff, scholarships and Native community engagement. Learn more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cBeing able to communicate and work with somebody who has had some of those shared experiences can be helpful, though I understand every experience of every individual is different and unique,\u201d Rodriguez says.<\/p>\n

Rodriguez primarily serves as a point of contact for online students once they officially enroll. He is a student advocate, connecting distance learners with the resources they need and helping them understand how online education works.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking here with Ecampus really spoke to me, specifically when I saw that we were working on this tribal communities initiative, I knew I wanted to play a role in order to lend my own perspective, my lens, and also share my experiences,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Building important relationships<\/h2>\n

In recent years, Oregon State Ecampus has boosted its efforts to provide better support and increase access and awareness for Oregon tribe members and other Indigenous peoples. OSU officially launched its tribal communities initiative<\/a> with the university\u2019s Office of Institutional Diversity to help Native students pursue their educational goals, which included designating Rodriguez as one of their key sources of support.<\/p>\n

Rodriguez says one of the most important efforts has been building relationships with tribal communities, members of which can turn to online education if they can\u2019t or don\u2019t wish to leave their homelands, jobs or families.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they have questions, they have specific, designated people they can communicate with,\u201d Rodriguez says. \u201cThey can expect flexibility within their courses. They can expect an inclusive environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oregon State is more strongly communicating to Indigenous students that university staff is available to help whenever they need it, Rodriguez says. He adds that all Native students, including those learning online, are welcomed as part of the OSU community. Despite them completing coursework remotely, Rodriguez can connect them to student groups and clubs, including the university\u2019s Kaku-Ixt Mana Ina Haws<\/a>.<\/p>\n

An advocate for distance students<\/h2>\n

In his role as student engagement program manager, Rodriguez helps online students resolve any issues they may face and offers advice to those who feel isolated from their classmates. His efforts enable students to become accustomed to the online format of learning, better manage their time, and bolster their overall success.<\/p>\n

Rodriguez, who speaks fluent Spanish and English, previously worked in the school\u2019s Office of Admissions, and his duties largely involved outreach and communication to Latino communities. He says he also attended different events for diverse populations \u2013 including tribal members \u2013 to guide them through the admissions process.<\/p>\n

Being online is a different type of learning journey, Rodriguez says, but for some students \u2013 especially those who have jobs, children or elders \u2013 the ability to fit their studies around their life schedules can lead to greater success. For these students, maintaining lines of communication with a support network is key.<\/p>\n

Rodriguez appreciates that he is able to watch online students thrive and grow.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing able to now serve in a role that is able to facilitate a lot of those processes is something that\u2019s really fulfilling for me,\u201d Rodriguez says.<\/p>\n

Ready to take your next step?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Request information today<\/a><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<\/span> 3<\/span> minute read<\/span><\/span>College students face a variety of challenges, from finding the right academic support to time management. As a first-generation college student and graduate, Eddie Rodriguez faced these challenges and others firsthand. Now, the sense of empathy and pride he feels as student engagement program manager at Oregon State Ecampus \u2013 including for students from Indigenous communities \u2013 inspires him to serve in this role every day. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":1285,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,6,15,3,672,657,676],"tags":[30,470],"class_list":["post-1284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all","category-ecampus","category-staff","category-features","category-learning-experience","category-resources","category-why-osu","tag-student-success","tag-tribal-communities"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/eddie-rodriguez-success-coach.jpg?fit=744%2C496&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7BNSE-kI","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2431,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/oregon-state-ecampus-online-tribal-communities-initiative-featured-in-a-newly-published-book-titled-race-and-rurality\/","url_meta":{"origin":1284,"position":0},"title":"Oregon State Ecampus’ online Tribal Communities Initiative featured in a newly published book titled ‘Race and Rurality’","author":"Elena Moffet","date":"December 8, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Marleigh Perez and Eddie Rodriguez of Ecampus documented some of the initiative\u2019s key successes for a chapter in a newly published book titled \u201cRace and Rurality: Considerations for Advancing Equity in Higher Education.\u201d The book offers insights into how higher education can better support rural communities of all different backgrounds.\u00a0","rel":"","context":"In "All Stories"","block_context":{"text":"All Stories","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Joe Peters","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joe-Peters-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joe-Peters-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joe-Peters-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Joe-Peters-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1309,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/community-for-native-american-students\/","url_meta":{"origin":1284,"position":1},"title":"Building a sense of community among online Native American students","author":"Jordan Friedman","date":"December 17, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The college experience is difficult for many first-generation students to navigate. 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It helped guide her to success as an undergraduate, and now she provides guidance to a new generation of students as assistant director of OSU\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Archives"","block_context":{"text":"Archives","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/archives\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Luhui Whitebear, the assistant director of Oregon State's Native American Longhouse Eena Haws, stands amid trees outside the NAL.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/luhui-whitebear-2019.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1826,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/serving-tribal-communities-online\/","url_meta":{"origin":1284,"position":3},"title":"Serving tribal communities through online education","author":"Marleigh Perez","date":"August 16, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"New trends are emerging in online education that require both our attention and a demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. At Oregon State University Ecampus, we\u2019re starting to see more traditionally diverse students choose online education. This, along with a leadership-driven commitment to repair and rebuild relationships with tribal\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "All Stories"","block_context":{"text":"All Stories","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A black sign in gold lettering that reads that Oregon State University, which serves Native and Indigenous students through online education and support","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/oregon-state-tribal-communities-1.jpg?fit=800%2C548&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/oregon-state-tribal-communities-1.jpg?fit=800%2C548&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/oregon-state-tribal-communities-1.jpg?fit=800%2C548&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/oregon-state-tribal-communities-1.jpg?fit=800%2C548&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1191,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/native-american-online-degree-support\/","url_meta":{"origin":1284,"position":4},"title":"Oregon State offering enhanced support services to help Native American students earn degrees online","author":"Tyler Hansen","date":"May 21, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Oregon State University is increasing its outreach to Native American communities in Oregon and across the country by enabling tribal members to earn college degrees through OSU\u2019s nationally ranked online programs. 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