The Navajo Teacher Education Initiative was developed in 1992 to improve the quality of Navajo education through the recruitment and training of prospective Navajo educators. Currently, the 242 schools on or near the Navajo Nation are staffed primarily by non-Navajo teachers who often do not understand the significance of Navajo culture, history, language, and values. The Navajo Nation is the largest reservation in the United States and is located in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Members of the initiative include Navajo Community College, the University of New Mexico, Northern Arizona University, Prescott College, Fort Lewis College, the University of Northern Colorado, and the Navajo Nation Division of Education. Objectives of the initiative include planning and implementing an integrated field-based teacher education program through a consortium of colleges and universities; integrating Navajo philosophy, language, and culture into required teacher education courses; developing a monitoring system for assessment of pilot projects; implementing a computerized Navajo teacher education tracking system; expanding curriculum developed by Navajo Community College and based on the Dine' Philosophy of Learning to other consortium members; disseminating best teaching practices through publications and presentations; and influencing legislative and policy development agendas regarding alternative teacher education efforts and funding policies. In November 1995, the Ford Foundation (sponsor of the consortium) and the American Association for Colleges of Teacher Education cosponsored a Navajo Nation Education Policy Forum that attracted 200 representatives of state education agencies, universities, state legislatures, local education agencies, and community and business interests. As a result of the forum, priority policy areas were identified. (LP)