Student Voices Are Needed in Washington. Please Call Your Elected Officials!

Feb 19, 2025 | Blog, Student Success

Calling all students! TCUs and TCU students need your voice in Washington. Both Haskell Indian Nations University and Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, the nation’s oldest and only federally operated tribal colleges, are facing an immediate crisis due to the implementation of EO 14210 and the White House memo on hiring freezes.

To help, all you need to do is make a few quick phone calls.

Follow these steps and call TODAY.

    1. Call your elected representative and senators at their Congressional Offices and ask for their Legislative Director. To find your representative and senators, use the USA Gov tool.
    2. Use this script for each call to your representative and senators:
        • Hello, my name is (blank). My zip code is (tell them your zip code) and I am a tribal college student at (tell them the name of your TCU).
        • Haskell Indian Nations University and Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, the Nation’s oldest and only federally chartered Tribal Colleges are in a crisis due to the implementation of EO 14210 and the White House memo on hiring freezes.
        • In the last week, each institution lost over 24 percent of its staff – including student safety personnel and instructors.
        • This is preventing the colleges’ ability to provide courses, programs, and student support services—and interfering with students’ completion of a higher education they paid for.
        • I am requesting that Haskell and SIPI be exempted from the hiring freeze and that terminated employees due to EO 14210 be reinstated.
        • If you need additional information, you can contact Moriah O’Brien, the American Indian Higher Education Consortium’s VP of Congressional and Federal Relations, at MOBrien@aihec.org or 703-838-0400.
        • Thank you for your time! I appreciate your help.

Recent Blog Posts

Protect the Department of Education

Protect the Department of Education

The American Indian College Fund is concerned that Native students, whose equitable access to higher education hinges on federal programs (which are tied to Native tribes’ trust and treaty relationship with the federal government) will be disproportionately and negatively impacted by the dismantling of the department and the haphazard way the Trump Administration is going about it.

American Indian College Fund Announces the 2024-25 Tribal College Students of the Year and Coca Cola Scholars

American Indian College Fund Announces the 2024-25 Tribal College Students of the Year and Coca Cola Scholars

The American Indian College Fund honored 34 Tribal College and University Students of the Year and 35 Coca-Cola First Generation Scholars at a ceremony in Rapid City, South Dakota, recognizing their academic achievements and community involvement. Additionally, Dr. Carla Sineway, President of Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College, was named the 2024-25 Tribal College and University President Honoree of the Year, with support from the Adolph Coors Foundation and The Coca-Cola Foundation.

Department of Education Says RIF Won’t Impact TCUs or Student Loans and Pell Grants

Department of Education Says RIF Won’t Impact TCUs or Student Loans and Pell Grants

The Office of the Undersecretary of the Department of Education sent a letter to stakeholders in higher education this weekend stating that although the recent reduction in force (RIF) aligned with President Trump’s commitment to return education control to states, core functions related to Federal Student Aid (FSA) and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) will not be impacted.