The Reservation Based/Community Determined program best meets its students' need by creating and delivering a well-defined, consistent program that balances personal authority, indigenous knowledge and academics. Personal authority challenges students to be personally accountable for their attendance, engagement and learning, and to declare the nature of their own work. Indigenous knowledge honors the founding principles of the program and its commitment to involving our community's keepers of cultural and traditional knowledge as teachers and valuable human resources. Academics give breadth within the liberal arts through reading, writing, research and other scholarly pursuits that complement personal authority and community knowledge.

The program delivers a consistent curriculum in the communities we serve. While some readings and assignments are consistent across the program at all sites, there is also flexibility for faculty to select and assign additional work or for students to undertake work of their own choosing.

Tribal communities, the RBCD Advisory Council, our students, and The Evergreen State College expect the faculty to create a program of core learning that includes math proficiency, critical thinking, analytical writing, information technology skills, research, and breadth and understanding of literature.