ESEA TITLE VI, PART A, SUBPART 1: Indian Education – Grants to LEAs

Funding

$105.4M, allocated by formula

Eligibility

LEAs, Indian tribes, Indian organizations, Indian community-based organizations, or a consortium of two or more of the same entities.

Sample Use of Funds

SEAs and LEAs have flexibility to carry out a wide variety of activities consistent with their specific needs. Activities could include:

• Career preparation activities to enable Indian students to participate in programs such as the programs supported by the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, including programs for tech-prep education, mentoring, and apprenticeship; culturally related activities that support the program described in the application submitted by the LEA;
• Activities that recognize and support the unique cultural and educational needs of Indian children, and incorporate appropriately qualified tribal elders and seniors;
• Activities that promote the incorporation of culturally responsive teaching and learning strategies into the educational program of the LEA’; dropout prevention strategies for Indian students; the acquisition of equipment, but only if the acquisition of the equipment is essential to meeting the unique cultural, language, and educational needs of Indian students, and to ensuring that all students meet the challenging State academic standards; family literacy services;
• Strategies to meet the educational needs of at-risk Indian students in correctional facilities, including such strategies that support Indian students who are transitioning from such facilities to schools served by LEAs;
• Activities that support Native American language programs and Native American language restoration programs, which may be taught by traditional leaders;
• Integrated educational services in combination with other programs that meet the needs of Indian children and their families, including programs that promote parental involvement in school activities and increase student achievement; Schoolwide programs, if approved by a representative committee defined under ESSA, is designed to meet the unique cultural, language, and educational needs of Indian students, and to ensure that all students meet the challenging State academic standards, and the LEA identifies in its application how the use of such funds in a schoolwide program will produce benefits to Indian students that would not be achieved if the funds were not used in a schoolwide program.

This grant has an extensive list of uses of funds. View the complete ESSA Federal Funding Guide below for the full list.

Key Provision: Stakeholder Engagement

The comprehensive plan must be developed in open consultation with parents of Indian children and teachers, and, if appropriate, Indian students from secondary schools, through public hearings held by the local educational agency to provide these individuals a full opportunity to understand the program and to offer their recommendations. The program developed by the local educational agency must include the participation and written approval of a committee that is composed of, and selected by parents of Indian children in the local educational agency’s schools; teachers in the schools; if appropriate, Indian students attending secondary schools of the agency; and a majority of whose members are parents of Indian children.

For more information, contact Tom Zembar at 202.822.7109 or [email protected]

Next Steps

You have a right to know if your state or district applied for the funds and influence how they are spent. Most grants have already been disbursed to your state and district, but others may require an application.

Once you find a grant, make sure it’s appropriate for your intended use. Then, contact your local NEA Affiliate to organize an effort to hold your district and state accountable for how the money is used.