A r c h i v e d I n f o r m a t i o n

Biennial Evaluation Report - FY 93-94

Chapter 112

Indian Education--Financial Assistance to Local Education Agencies and Indian-Controlled Schools for the Education of Indian Children--Subpart 1

(CFDA Nos. 84.060 and 84.072)

I. Program Profile

Legislation: Indian Education Act of 1988 (Title V, Part C, Subpart 1 of the Augustus F. Hawkins-Robert T. Stafford Elementary and Secondary School Improvement Amendments of 1988, P.L. 100-297), as amended (25 U.S.C. 2601-2606) (expires September 30, 1999).

Purpose: Subpart 1 of the Indian Education Act provides formula grant and competitive grant assistance to local education agencies (LEAs) and Indian-controlled schools for programs to address the special educational and culturally related academic needs of Indian children.

Funding History

Fiscal Year	Appropriation	Fiscal Year	Appropriation
1973	$11,500,000	1987	$47,200,000
1975	25,000,000	1988	49,170,000
1980	52,000,000	1989	52,748,000
1981	58,250,000	1990	54,276,000
1982	54,960,000	1991	56,259,000
1983	48,465,000	1992	56,965,000
1984	50,900,000	1993	59,304,000
1985	50,323,000	1994	60,304,000
1986	47,870,000

II. Program Information and Analysis

Population Targeting

For purposes of the formula grant program, eligible applicants include LEAs, Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) contract schools and, since FY 1989, schools operated directly by the BIA. Eligible applicants under the competitive grant program include Indian-controlled schools operated by Indian tribes or Indian organizations and are generally located on or near reservations, and LEAs in existence not more than 3 years.

Services

Using the six National Education Goals existent at the time as a foundation, the Indian Nations At Risk Task Force developed 10 National Goals for American Indians and Alaska Natives, a strategic framework for improving schools, and specific recommendations for various partners whose participation is critical, i.e., parents, school officials, tribes, local governments, State governments, the Federal Government, and colleges and universities. The Task Force recommended that the Indian Education Act of 1972, as amended, provide long-term discretionary funding for model projects and outreach activities for Native parents and students designed to improve schools and academic performance (III.1).

Grants under this subpart may be used for:

(1) planning and development of programs, including pilot projects designed to test the effectiveness of programs;

(2) establishment and operation of programs, including minor remodeling of space used for such programs and acquisition of necessary equipment; and

(3) training of counselors at eligible schools in counseling techniques relevant to the treatment of alcohol and substance abuse.

Fiscal year 1993 and 1994 formula grants were awarded to 1,182 education entities in 41 States each year for use in school years 1993-94 and 1994-95. These LEAs reported an eligible Indian student enrollment of approximately 395,000. Grant amounts ranged from $581 to $1,428,000 (III.2).

According to an audit of 1987-88 formula grant projects conducted by the Office of Indian Education, the majority of the projects audited were meeting all or most of the perceived needs for supplementary education-related services for participating students (III.3).

Nineteen new and continuation grants totaling about $3.0 million were awarded in both FY 1993 and FY 1994 to Indian-controlled schools to support special enrichment projects that supplement already established programs. These projects were expected to serve approximately 4,210 participants in school year 1993-94, and 4,420 participants in school year 1994-95 (III.2).

Program Administration

One shortcoming noted in a 1983 evaluation (III.4) was the failure of LEAs to maintain eligibility information as required to ensure that the Indian Education Act formula allocations are determined only by accurate counts of Indian children who qualify under the Act (III.2). However, according to the audit conducted by the Office of Indian Education, LEAs appeared to have made substantial improvements since 1983 (III.3).

Outcomes

On the 1992 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 82 percent of eighth-grade American Indian students performed below the standard for proficiency in reading, compared to 66 percent of whites, 62 percent of Asians, 87 percent of Hispanics, and 92 percent of blacks. Among 12th graders, 76 percent of American Indian students performed below the standard for proficiency, compared to 57 percent of whites, 61 percent of Asians, 79 percent of Hispanics, and 84 percent of blacks (III.5).

Test scores of schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs showed that their students were falling well behind other students nationwide in assessments of reading, language, and mathematics (III.6).

III. Sources of Information

Indian Nations At Risk: An Educational Strategy for Action (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, 1991).
Program files.
Audit of Indian Education Act Formula Grant Program-School Year 1987-88 (Washington, DC: Indian Education Program Office, U.S. Department of Education, 1990).
A National Impact Evaluation of the Indian Education Act Part A Program (Arlington, VA: Development Associates, 1983).
NAEP 1992 Reading Report Card for the Nation and the States: Data from the National and Trial State Assessments (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 1993).
Report on BIA Education: Excellence in Indian Education Through the Effective Schools Process (Washington, DC: Office of Indian Education Programs, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1988).

IV. Planned Studies

The Improving America's Schools Act of 1993, which reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, requires that LEAs applying for formula grants submit comprehensive plans to address the needs, including language and cultural needs, of Indian students. The Department is planning to conduct an evaluation of these local plans, as well as an evaluation of Indian education components of selected Goals 2000 plans to improve educational opportunities for Indian children and adults.

V. Contacts for Further Information

Program Operations:: Director, Office of Indian Education, (202) 260-3774
Program Studies:: Susan Ross, (202) 401-1958

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[Allen J. Ellender Fellowships]

[Special Programs for Indian Students--Subpart 2]