Cheryl Crazy Bull, President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund
The Trump administration announced it will transfer more than a dozen Department of Education programs to the Departments of Interior and Labor as part of its plan to dismantle or wind down the Department of Education. The particular programs of concern to the Native community support elementary, high school, and post-secondary students and institutions. The administration also intends to transfer other education programs to the Departments of Health and Human Services and State.
Native educators, tribal leaders, and our allies are concerned about the impact of this transfer on our community members’ access to resources, the quality of education delivery, and the stability of staffing and funding.
First, only Congress has the authority to dismantle the Department of Education. The strategy of using Interagency Agreements to transfer programming while retaining funds and a semblance of oversight within the Department of Education is an attempt to bypass Congressional authority. The Department of Education oversees valuable programs that specifically support American Indian and Alaska Native children. For instance, the Office of Indian Education oversees the National Advisory Council on Indian Education as required by federal law.
Second, any move regarding Native education, including tribal colleges and universities, must uphold the federal government’s trust and treaty responsibility to provide education for Native people. Concerning is the lack of preparation surrounding the move, including no consultation with tribal nations, and the lack of clarity around the broader implications of moving post-secondary oversight to the Department of Interior, in which the Bureau of Indian Education sits.
Finally, it is imperative that the federal government, with which tribes have a trust and treaty relationship, work with tribal communities and those in Native higher education. The Trump administration has said it wishes to give states more power with shaping school policies, however, states are not party to the treaties with Indian Nations. It is the federal government’s legal relationship with the Tribes alone, and that relationship cannot be outsourced.
We must ensure and monitor the stability and continuity of the tribal colleges and universities so that the Native students we serve can continue to access a quality higher education for the sustainability of our families, community, and future.
