UNA, Cherokee Nation Sign Learning Agreement

Jan. 26, 2022

Michelle R. Eubanks , UNA, at meubanks@una.edu, 256.765.4392

FLORENCE, AL – Officials with the University of North Alabama and the Cherokee Nation, based in Tahlequah, Okla., have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that allows Cherokee Nation citizens and employees to enroll as they seek to begin or complete their graduate or undergraduate degrees in any one of UNA’s dozens of academic programs.

“The Cherokee Nation has a longstanding history of education and continues to support our citizens and employees who choose to pursue their academic degrees,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. “We’re glad we could come together with the University of North Alabama which is offering our employees and citizens who apply and are accepted a discounted scholarship tuition, so we can continue on this mission.”

The agreement is unique at the University and for the Cherokee Nation, as UNA is the first among schools in Alabama to take this step and the first for the Cherokee Nation to partner with a university outside its region. The agreement is effective immediately, and the more than 400,000 tribal citizens and 4,300 tribal government employees of the Cherokee Nation may begin taking advantage of the agreement for the Spring ’22 semester in both online and on-campus courses.

“As a proud member of the Cherokee Nation, I am so pleased to have had the opportunity to bring UNA and the Nation together for this important and historic agreement,” said Amber Fite-Morgan, UNA’s General Counsel and President of the Alabama Trail of Tears Association. “This partnership will pave the way for ongoing success among the Nation, and they can be assured that the education they receive will be among the best in Alabama and in the southeast.”

Already, citizens and employees of the Cherokee Nation have enrolled at the University, predominantly in courses offered in the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business-accredited College of Business and Technology.

“Knowing that citizens of the Cherokee Nation are enrolling in our highly rated programs within the College of Business and Technology tells us that this agreement is beneficial for all involved,” said Dr. Ross Alexander, Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs. “We take pride in providing an excellent education for all of our students, whether online or on-campus, graduate or undergraduate. We look forward to seeing this partnership expand as we continue provide innovative programs for our partners, especially those from traditionally underserved communities.”

About The University of North Alabama

The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs through the colleges of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering; Business and Technology; Education and Human Sciences; and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. UNA Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of the NCAA Division I’s ASUN and Big South conferences. The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: www.una.edu and www.una.edu/unaworks/.

About the Cherokee Nation

The Cherokee Nation is a federally recognized government of the Cherokee people and has inherent sovereign status recognized by treaty and law. The seat of tribal government is the W.W. Keeler Complex, near Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the capital of the Cherokee Nation. With more than 400,000 citizens, 11,000 employees, and a variety of tribal enterprises ranging from aerospace and defense contracts to entertainment venues, Cherokee Nation is one of the largest employers in northeastern Oklahoma and the largest tribal nation in the United States. To learn more, please visit www.cherokee.org.