U.S. Department of the Interior – 2016 Funding for Native Youth

The President’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 budget maintains the Administration’s strong commitment to tribal self-determination and strengthening tribal communities, and is part of the Administration’s “all of government” approach to addressing tribal needs and delivering on federal responsibilities through coordinated work across the Federal government. Coordination of this work across federal agencies is being carried out through the White House Council on Native American Affairs, established by Executive Order on June 26, 2013, by President Obama and chaired by the Department of the Interior (DOI).

This preview focuses on Indian educationas an integrative, comprehensive, and culturally appropriate approaches to help improve lives and opportunities for Native American youth. Broader Native American funding issues within DOI and across the government will be covered when the President’s Budget is released on February 2nd.

Creating Opportunities for Native Youth through the Generation Indigenous Initiative. The 2016 budget includes key investments to launch Generation Indigenous, an initiative addressing barriers to success for Native American youth. The Interior budget request includesa landmark Indian education transformation effort (see below) and the Department of Education request provides $53 million for Native Youth Community Projects (NYCP), an increase of $50 million to dramatically expandsupport for these community-driven, comprehensive strategies to improve college and career-readiness among Native youth.In addition, there are new DOI investments to:

  • Make advanced higher education opportunities available through$41 million ($4.8 million above 2015)inscholarships and adult education;
  • Provide training opportunities focused on natural resources managementwith $3.0 million to support approximately 60 new tribal youth projects;
  • Work comprehensively with Native families with a $15 million increase for the Tiwahe Initiative; and
  • Make it easier for Tribes to find and use the hundreds of services available across the Federal government through a $4.0 million investment to establish a One-Stop Tribal Support Center. This Center will include an online portal and services to support Tribes in accessing Federal programs and resources at the regional and local levels, with an initial focus on programs serving Native American youth in support of the Generation Indigenous initiative.

Transforming Indian Education. The Generation Indigenous initiativeincludesa $1 billion investment in Indian education to support a comprehensive transformation of the Bureau of Indian Education. This multi-year process will transform the BIE into an organization that serves as a capacity builder and service provider to support Tribes in educating their youth and deliver a world-class and culturally appropriate education across Indian Country. The 2016 budget request supports the reform with a $138 million increase to:

  • Provide $58.7 million to initiate a multi-year BIE school repair and replacement plan;
  • Deliver broadband access to all BIE schools over three years with an initial investment of$34.2 million;
  • Boost operations and maintenance funding for Indian school facilities to $125 million, a $20.0 million increase;
  • Encourage self-determination in education by providing $75 million, an increase of $12.9 million, to fully fund tribal costs of delivering their own education programs;
  • Provide a $10 million increase to incentivize creative solutions to school transformation; and
  • Invest $2.6 million in stronger school administration.

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