Who We Are
The Native American Community Academy (NACA) is a tuition-free public charter school serving students in elementary, middle and high school (grades K-12th), originally located in the Southeast Heights of Albuquerque New Mexico. Our new location is 1000 Indian School Road NW Albuquerque, NM 87104.
NACA’s student body is diverse with many cultural and ethnic backgrounds represented, including
students from more than 60 different tribes.
NACA is a small school that focuses on identity through culture & language, holistic wellness, community & family, and academic preparation. Our philosophy is grounded in both the Indigenous thought and a rigorous approach to career-preparatory education. We require excellence from our students, dedication from our teachers, and commitment from our parents.
Students of all backgrounds are welcome at NACA.
A Message From Our Founding Principal
The Native American Community Academy is the collaborative effort and the dream of many educators, parents, professionals and leaders throughout New Mexico.
In Albuquerque, New Mexico there are approximately 5,500 Native American students in the local school system that currently serves a total of 80,000 students. This population is steadily growing, mirroring nationwide estimates that 66% of all Native American families currently live in urban areas.
With a commitment to better educating Native American children, more than 100 community members gathered in 2004 to share their concerns and ideas. Community leaders, teachers, physicians, parents, community advocates, and business owners posed a key question:
How can public education embrace the future while sustaining our identities, culture and traditions?
Their answers echoed one another describing the importance of integrating “essential values”: personal wellness, cultural identity, and academic preparation. These answers helped create the core philosophy for which the Native American Community Academy is now based on.
NACA’s core philosophy is built on the essential values of its community and grounded in the Native American perspective. It is the clear understanding that educating a child is not simply an academic process. To truly prepare a child for academic and life success, NACA believes the school experience must reach and honor the child on many levels – and the approach must be integrated.
NACA has found that by integrating culture, language, personal wellness, family support, community connectedness, leadership preparedness, and college readiness into the academic curriculum a child is much more effectively guided and nurtured toward his or her success. This principal becomes the educational journey provided by NACA.
In the implementation of our philosophy, NACA continually seeks to build a strong foundation for education through (1) unique learning approaches, (2) diverse cultural perspectives, and (3) an unprecedented network of community organizations and professionals who support its students.
NACA strives to:
- Increase the number of Native Americans who graduate from high school as well as those who earn a college degree after high school graduation;
- Prepare NACA students for personal success while promoting their overall wellness;
- Support families of NACA students;
- Build a stronger community through partnerships and student services.