A new program to help indigenous students succeed academically was introduced September 7 at the University of the Frontier in southern Chile. The program, called RÜPÜ, is financially backed by the university and the Ford Foundation. RÜPÜ means "path" in the indigenous Mapudungun language. In its first year, the program will use interviews and diagnostic studies to evaluate ways of ensuring academic success at the undergraduate level, and explore ways to encourage indigenous students to pursue post-graduate studies while maintaining their indigenous identities. The Universidad de la Frontera has the largest number of indigenous students of any institution of higher education in Chile; 15 percent of its 8,400 students identify as indigenous.
