According to a recent press release, the Biden-Harris Administration awarded millions to strengthen Native American education. U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Angel Cardona stated, "The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring Native American students have access to an inclusive and culturally affirming education that’s also reflected in the teachers in their schools."
In an effort to uplift Native American education and cultural preservation, the U.S. Department of Education announced on Oct. 17, 2023, new awards totaling more than $11 million. The funds will be distributed through three initiatives: the Native American Language Resource Centers (NALRC), the Native American Teacher Retention Initiative (NATRI), and the State Tribal Education Partnership (STEP) program.
The NALRC program aims to preserve and use Native American languages in classrooms across the United States. Funding will be allocated to centers in three geographic regions—Central, Northwest, and West—as well as a national center. These centers will provide technical assistance, research dissemination, leadership development, capacity-building services, and immersive, interactive learning experiences.
The NATRI program addresses the lack of educational opportunities for Native American students, including the scarcity of culturally competent teachers. The initiative seeks to promote the retention of Native American educators by creating opportunities for them to serve in leadership roles. Projects funded under NATRI include professional learning communities, leadership roles for educators, mentoring programs, and accessible networks to expertise.
The STEP program, which received $1.6 million, aims to bolster Tribal self-determination and promote collaboration between tribal, state, and local educational agencies. Projects funded under this program will focus on areas such as cross-agency data sharing agreements, culturally responsive Native American student identification, and systemic change related to college readiness and workforce development.
Some of the major grantees under the NALRC program include Little Priest Tribal College, which will serve states like Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota, among others, and the University of Hawaii, which will act as the National Center. In the NATRI program, grants have been awarded to a range of organizations, from the Stone Child College in Montana to the National Indian Education Association based in the District of Columbia. The STEP program grantees include the Nez Perce Tribe in Idaho and the Sac & Fox Nation of Oklahoma.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said the grants aim to provide Native American students with "greater opportunities to learn in inclusive environments that uplift their cultures, revitalize their languages, and ultimately, promote their academic success and wellbeing."
