UW scholarship aims to boost Indigenous enrollment in Laramie

Shoshone Business Council Chairman Wayland Large called the University of Wyoming’s new Wind River Promise Fund “a long time coming” as the school tries to widen the pipeline from Wind River to Laramie. At Wyoming Indian High School in Ethete, counselor Roland Robinson said only a couple of graduates typically apply to UW in a normal year, but he expected about 10 applicants this year from an estimated graduating class of 45.

UW announced the scholarship on April 13, and the program is aimed at enrolled members of the Eastern Shoshone or Northern Arapaho tribes who live in Wyoming and have graduated from a Wyoming high school. It can cover up to the full cost of undergraduate tuition and fees, and it is open to first-year students, transfer students and returning students. First-year applicants must confirm enrollment by Friday, May 1, 2026, and the scholarship application itself is due Wednesday, July 1, 2026.

The award is structured to follow students beyond the first semester. New first-year recipients can renew it for up to eight semesters, while transfer students can renew for up to six semesters, as long as they remain full-time, keep a 2.0 UW GPA, complete the FAFSA each year and stay in good academic standing. UW trustees approved $2 million for the endowment and another $250,000 in expendable funds in August 2025, then voted in March to extend eligibility to returning students as well as first-year and transfer students.

For Albany County, the question is not just whether the scholarship exists, but whether it changes who can realistically afford to enroll at the University of Wyoming and stay there through graduation. UW President Ed Seidel called the investment “a tremendous commitment” to students from the Wind River tribes and stressed that admission deadlines matter if students want to use the aid this fall.

The scholarship also fits into a broader support network already on campus. UW’s Native American Education, Research & Cultural Center says it offers academic support, cultural enrichment, peer mentoring, internships, leadership opportunities and the Native American Summer Institute for high school students from the Wind River Reservation, surrounding communities and Laramie. Other aid, including the Chief Washakie Memorial Endowment and the Northern Arapaho Endowment, has long served Native students too, but the Wind River Promise Fund stands out because it can erase tuition and fee costs entirely for eligible students.

In a county where the university shapes the local economy, enrollment patterns and the region’s future workforce, the scholarship is more than a financial aid notice. It is a test of whether UW can turn a long-running access problem into a stronger Indigenous presence on campus and, eventually, in Wyoming communities after graduation.