TRIBAL CONSULTATIONS

The Bureau of Indian Education conducted six national tribal consultations throughout the United States. At each of these consultations, BIE gathered the input of tribal leadership on the organizational design recommended by the BIE’s Blueprint for Reform. The purpose of each session focused on the following:

• The proposed reorganization based on the Secretarial Order 3334 which calls for the restructuring of the BIE into an innovative organization that will improve operations for both tribally-controlled and BIE-operated schools.

• The proposed changes have two primary objectives: 1) strengthen BIE’s capability to address school operating needs; and 2) provide greater oversight and improved service delivery to BIE operated and tribally controlled schools.

TRIBAL CONSULTATION OVERVIEW

A Federal Register notice was sent to announce the tribal consultations throughout the country. The tribal consultations began with an Overview of the Proposed Reorganization PowerPoint presentation explaining the reorganization followed with an open discussion. These tribal consultations occurred at the following dates and locations:

National Tribal Consultations

·         April 22, 2015­ – Ramkota Inn, 2111 N. Lacrosse Street, Rapid City, SD (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

·         April 24, 2015 – United South & Eastern Tribes Headquarters, 711 Stewarts Ferry Pike, Nashville, TN (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

·         April 27, 2015 – Navajo DOT, #16 Old Coalmine Road, Mentmore, NM (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

·         April 29, 2015 – Webinar (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

Additional Tribal Consultations

·         May 01, 2015 – Renaissance, 10 North Broadway Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

·         May 15, 2015 – Isleta Casino, Seminar Room, Albuquerque, NM (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

Regional and Individual Tribal Consultations (2015)

·         February 11 – Southern Pueblos

·         February 18 – Oglala Sioux Tribe

·         February 19 – Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe

·         March 2 - Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate

·         March 3 – Crow Creek Sioux

·         March 3 – Lower Brule Sioux

·         March 4 – Yankton Sioux

·         March 16 – Standing Rock Sioux Tribe

·         March 17 – Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians

·         March 23 – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 

·         March 26 – Rosebud Sioux Tribe

·         March 26 – United South and Eastern Tribes (USET), Nashville, TN

·         April 13 – Northern Pueblos 

COMMENT PERIOD

The deadline for comments was extended from May 15, 2015 to Friday, May 22, 2015 at 5:00 pm. 

American Indian Education Study Group Recommendations Tribal Consultations

In 2014, the American Indian Education Study Group hosted a series of tribal consultations to gather input on the Blueprint for Reform.

·         April 28, 2014 – Oglala, SD (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

·         April 30, 2014 – Andarko, OK (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

·         May 2, 2014 – Auburn, WA (Tribal Consultation Transcript)

·         May 5, 2014 – Sacaton, AZ (Tribal Consultation Transcript)