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President Bush today appointed 14 individuals to serve on the President's Board of Advisors on Tribal Colleges and Universities.

Authorized under an executive order, the board is charged with ensuring that tribal colleges and universities have full access to federal and private programs and funds that benefit other higher education institutions. The board will make recommendations to the president and the secretary of education on ways the federal government and the private sector can help tribal colleges strengthen and expand their resources, programs, facilities and use of technologies.

"Tribal colleges and universities help preserve irreplaceable languages and cultural traditions. At the same time, of course, they offer a high-quality college education to thousands of students, and provide much-needed job training and other means of economic development in Indian country," President Bush said today.

The president has designated Ron McNeil of Fort Yates, N.D., to serve as chairman of the board. McNeil is the president of Sitting Bull College and a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.

Other members selected to serve on the board include:

• David Anderson of Edina, Minn.; chairman of Famous Dave's of America restaurant chain; member of the Chippewa and Choctaw tribes;

• Martha McLeod of Brimley, Mich.; founding president of Bay Mills Community College;

• Carl Altman of Golden, Col.; practicing attorney specializing in telecommunications and natural resources; member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin;

• Kathy Domenici of Albuquerque, N.M.; owner of Communications Services, a mediation and facilitation training service and partner in Domenici Littlejohn, a communications consulting firm;

• Thomas Cole of Moore, Okla.; president of Cole, Hargrave, Snodgrass & Associates, a political consulting firm; member of the Chickasaw Nation;

• Ann Marie Downes of Homer, Neb.; president of Little Priest Tribal College; member of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska;

• Mark Hatfield of Tillmook, Ore.; former U.S. Senator from Oregon, currently an adjunct professor at Portland State University, Lewis and Clark College and George Fox University;

• Daniel Keating of Tulsa, Okla.; president of Summit Consolidated Group, a financial consulting firm in Tulsa;

• David Matheson of Worley, Idaho; chief executive officer of Coeur d'Alene Casino; member of the Coeur d'Alene tribe;

• Karen Swisher of Lawrence, Kan.; president of Haskell Indian Nations University; member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe;

• Della Warrior of Santa Fe, N.M.; president and development director of the Institute of American Indian Arts; member of the Otoe-Missouria tribe;

• Richard Williams of Broomfield, Col.; executive director of the American Indian College Fund; member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe; and,

• Eddie Brown of Chesterfield; Mo.; associate dean for community affairs and director of the Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies at Washington University in St. Louis; member of the Pascua Yagui tribe.

"I look forward to working with this distinguished board to implement the promise of the No Child Left Behind Act and ensure that more American Indian youngsters can pursue and benefit from higher education," Secretary of Education Rod Paige said. "Our tribal colleges and universities are an important vehicle for making that promise a reality."

President Bush's proposed 2003 budget includes more than $18 million for programs to strengthen Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs)—an increase of 3.6 percent over current funding levels. The 32 TCUs are located in 12 states and serve an estimated 30,000 students from 250 tribes.

A copy of the new executive order can be found at www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/07/20020703-16.html

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