Education | Politics

Senate Indian Affairs Committee to hear three education bills

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

The United States flag flies at half-mast on the campus of the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in honor and mourning of the victims of the terrorist attacks in Paris, France. Photo from Facebook

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee will take testimony on three education bills at a hearing on Wednesday.

The bills address a wide range of issues affecting Indian students at public schools, Bureau of Indian Education schools and tribal colleges. They also extend funding for Native language programs and create new opportunities for people who want to teach in Indian Country.

The three bills are:

• S.410, the Building upon Unique Indian Learning and Development (BUILD) Act. The bill seeks to improve programs for Indian students in public schools as well as Bureau of Indian Education schools. It sets funding levels for Impact Aid and authorizes forward-funding for the Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development, Haskell Indian Nations University and Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute.
• S.1163, the Native American Languages Reauthorization Act. The bill reauthorizes funding for Native language programs at the Administration for Native Americans.
• S.1928, the Native Educator Support and Training (NEST) Act. The bill establishes new scholarships, federal student loan forgiveness plans and teacher development courses to encourage people to work at Bureau of Indian Education schools.

The hearing will take place immediately following a business meeting at 2:15pm in Room 628 of the Senate Dirksen Office Building. The witness list follows:

The Honorable Lillian Sparks
Commissioner, Administration for Native Americans, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C.
The Honorable Robert Moquino
First Lieutenant Governor, Pueblo of Acoma, Acoma, NM
Dr. Glenabah Martinez
Associate Professor, Educational Thought and Sociocultural Studies, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM
Ms. Michelle Accardi
Director, State Policy and Outreach, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, Arlington, VA

Committee Notices:
Business Meeting to Consider S. 817 & S. 818 (November 18, 2015)
Legislative Hearing to receive testimony on the following bills (November 18, 2015)