Native American Studies programs, however small, are the Native community's academic foothold in higher education. To maintain and expand this foothold of approximately 105 programs on university and college campuses throughout the United States, Native American Studies must continue to develop its professional capacity to act as an "independent prosecutor-advocate" in higher education on behalf of Native people. To do this, Native American Studies must achieve the quality and breadth of responsibilities required of other disciplines: the teaching of a well-organized and defined curriculum; the development of a sustained and creative research mission; and programs of service that meet the needs of the Native community, the public, and the profession. Professional standards need to be adopted that articulate the discipline's dual, and often conflicting, responsibilities to both Native and academic communities. In the United States, the lack of a nationally recognized professional association continues to inhibit coordination and cooperation between existing Native American Studies programs and--even more important--it has denied Native American Studies an international voice with which to affect events involving Native people and communities throughout the world. (JHZ)