Public schools on reservations are feeling the effects of the federal budget sequester long before other schools, a state education official in Arizona said.

Schools on and near reservations depend heavily on Impact Aid. The program immediately lost $60 million when the sequester kicked in on March 1.

That means reservation schools are already cutting back on staff and programs. The Window Rock School District on the Navajo Nation could be forced to close three schools if lawmakers fail to resolve the matter.

"The longer it goes on, the more uncertainty there is," Chris Kotterman, the deputy director of government relations for the Arizona Department of Education, told Cronkite News.

Get the Story:
Window Rock superintendent describes sequestration's effect on schools (Cronkite News 3/19)

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