ADA, Okla. – Students from Jones Academy, located in Hartshorne, Okla., visited East Central University during Homecoming festivities, Saturday, Oct. 24.

The group of students, including Juniors and Seniors, attended a special Homecoming edition of the university’s Tiger Preview Day, hosted by the ECU Education Department’s I-DREAM Grant project team.

Students spent the day touring campus, watching the Homecoming parade, enjoying brunch in Taff Dining Hall and attending the ECU Tiger football game at Koi Ishto Stadium.

I-DREAM

The I-DREAM Project is a five-year, $3.1 million federally supported initiative designed to strengthen Oklahoma’s teacher workforce by increasing participation and success among students who may face barriers to teacher preparation access. The project emphasizes place-based strategies and Indigenous-grounded pedagogy through the Family Education Model, an approach proven effective across tribal-college contexts for promoting student persistence and community connection.

I-DREAM supports students whose experiences and perspectives reflect the communities served by Oklahoma’s schools, including those with First American legal status, bilingual students, first-generation college students or individuals from rural backgrounds, whose preparation and participation are vital to the state’s educator workforce.

I-DREAM provides financial, academic, and holistic supports, as well as high-impact professional experiences, to prepare students for successful, sustainable careers in teaching and educational leadership.

Jones Academy

Founded in 1891 by the Choctaw Nation, Jones Academy is a no-cost American Indian boarding school located four miles north of Hartshorne in Eastern Oklahoma. The school is nestled among 540 acres of rolling pastures and trees at the foot of the Pocahontas Mountains in Oklahoma’s Ouachita Mountain range. Approximately 200 students attend grades 1st-12th each year from tribal nations across the US, in particular our neighboring communities in Oklahoma. Jones Academy and its partners are transforming learning experiences for Native youth by helping them discover life pathways and cultivate a sense of cultural identity.

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