Indian Education Oversight. Hearing before the Select Committee on Indian Affairs, United States Senate, Ninety-Seventh Congress, Second Session on Oversight of Indian Education (May 18-19, 1982).

Overview & Synopsis

The Indian education oversight hearing of May 18 and 19, 1982, focused on federal responsibility for the education of Indians; Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) education services (including BIA elementary and secondary schools and contract schools); proposed transfer of the Indian Education Act, Title IV, program from the Department of Education to BIA; proposed reorganization of BIA Office of Indian Education programs; and cumulative effect of budget reduction in impact aid, Title IV, on BIA education programs and the quality of Indian education. Testimony, prepared statements, and other material were accepted from representatives of individual Indian tribes and tribal schools, federations of tribes, other Indian groups, urban school boards that serve Indian populations, BIA, and the Department of Education. The consensus among Indian witnesses was (1) that they were satisfied with the federal obligation to the Indian tribes, including the obligation to provide educational opportunities for Indian students, (2) that proposals to close Indian schools and to tranfer Title IV to BIA should have been discussed with Indian people, and (3) that they opposed transfer of Title IV to BIA. Effects of funding cuts and inefficient BIA administrative procedures on Indian schools were documented. (MH)