History of NHS College.

The Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College (NHSC) is tribally chartered by the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation headquarters at New Town, North Dakota. NHSC is tribally controlled by a Board of Directors, which consist of seven members. The College was founded May 2, 1973, as the agency responsible for higher education on the Fort Berthold Reservation.

The Three Affiliated Tribes endorsed the concept that a locally based higher education institution was needed to train Tribal members and to act as a positive influence in retaining the Tribal cultures. A steering committee was appointed to oversee the initial operations of the College. This committee was replaced by the selection of a Board of Directors in 1974.

The first classes offered at NHSC were on an extension basis with coordinating accredited institutions. The articulation agreements made in the beginning were with University of Mary, Bismarck, ND; Minot State College, Minot, ND; and the University of North Dakota, Williston Center, Williston, ND. The College proceeded to develop long-range planning models. This planning resulted in the development of a framework for carrying out the mission and goals of the College, and also in the improvement of the educational and vocational services in the communities throughout the Reservation.

Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College was granted accreditation on February 12, 1988, through the North Central Association of Schools and Colleges. On July 12, 2006, Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College was granted continued 10 year accreditation through the Higher Learning Commission of Schools and Colleges (HLC). The college is also one of thirty-two tribal colleges granted 1994 Land Grant Institution status. Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College is accredited by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College is also a member of the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC). On February 25, 2011, HLC’s Institutional Actions Council (IAC) voted to extend the College’s Accreditation to include Bachelor of Science Degrees in Elementary Education and Environmental Science, and the Bachelor of Arts in Native American Studies, making NHSC a Four-Year Institution.